Up to $50m gains for Lismore in new approach to fast tracking sustainable growth policies
Lismore Council have undertaken a series of dramatic initiatives to enable housing choices in its city that will retain high earning individuals, attract others who will create new businesses as well as deliver a component of affordable housing options. This could mean up to $50 million additional local retail expenditure and over 1,700 jobs in the North Lismore Plateau Growth Area alone.
A council-based process, driven by Kobus Mentz, was used to compress months of work, decision making, and programming into a very short space of time. This new approach uses a series of highly structured two-day work sessions involving land owners, their consultants, all relevant council staff, and the elected members.
Specific outputs are relentlessly pursued such as headline agreements around design quality, housing diversity and affordability and environmental standards. Commitments from both sides of the table are made around infrastructure provision and programme.