Affordable Housing

Mr TELFER (Flinders) (15:08): My question is to the Minister for Housing. Can the minister provide an update on the tender process to build 33 affordable homes on Sherriff Street, Underdale, and whether the development is on track to be built? With your leave, sir, and that of the house, I will explain.

Leave granted.

Mr TELFER: Development approval was given to 31 allotments on Sherriff Street, Underdale late last year, however, the opposition understands the tender process has been paused.

The Hon. N.D. CHAMPION (Taylor—Minister for Housing and Urban Development, Minister for Housing Infrastructure, Minister for Planning) (15:09): There are a range of projects that the Housing Trust does all over the city and they have to go before planning. Just down in the member for Morphett's electorate there are some proposals for apartments and there has been community opposition because of the number of car parks, for instance. The member for Morphett has written to me, and the South Australian Housing Trust has responded by basically lifting the number of car parks as part of that proposal.

The proposal on Sherriff Street was a series of very intensive developments along that street—very, very intensive developments—effectively using the pathway that the South Australian Housing Trust has in the planning system which gives discounts on parking and a whole range of things. One of the issues on Sherriff Street was that you had a series of allotments along the road and so very intensive development. One allotment being developed might have been appropriate but the traffic numbers in the street presents a level of intensive development which is a challenge.

It doesn't matter whether it is the apartments on Anzac Highway, in the member for Morphett's electorate, where we are adjusting the design around car parking, or Sherriff Street where we are rethinking essentially the intensity of the development along that street, or whether it is Bowden where we had a proposal that was pushing the absolute limits of the Planning and Design Code, sometimes developments change along the way, and they change for good reason: as a result of community feedback or planning concerns or transport concerns. This happens pretty regularly during these projects.