Page 2835 - Week 10 - Wednesday, 6 October 2021
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place, a familiarity or surrounds, consistency, and shared experiences derived from communal space, repeated contact and interactions over time.
The majority of the future growth within our city will be within our existing urban footprint, through a range of future developments. The parliamentary agreement sets a target of 70 per cent of new housing development to be within the existing urban footprint. This development will span projects with a range of density options, from multi-unit, high-rise buildings to townhouses and new suburbs. Critical to futureproofing greenfield development sites, however, is the consideration of possible extensions beyond the limits of the ACT’s borders.
In noting this potential option I note the extensive regional relationship the ACT has with our bordering New South Wales townships; for example, with neighbouring Queanbeyan, Jerrabomberra and Murrumbateman. There is a great flow of residents across the border each day for work, training, leisure and commercial reasons. This relationship of interconnectedness between our communities has been highlighted quite recently with the pandemic response public health measures implementing border restrictions which have outlined all the essential reasons people move between the ACT and New South Wales each day.
The Canberra region is a strong, growing economy, with Australia’s most geographically diverse natural environment. It encompasses the south-western slopes of New South Wales, the Southern Tablelands, the nation’s capital, the South Coast, the Snowy Mountains and the New South Wales high country. Our vibrant regional economy is underpinned by transport connections to Canberra and Sydney, offering diverse agricultural and tourism opportunities as well as collaborations between public and private sectors.
In this regional context, the concept of place-making in building neighbouring or cross-border communities holds new opportunities for the role of the Suburban Land Agency in establishing inclusive neighbourhoods and communities with best practice urban design which pays particular attention to the physical, cultural and social identities that define that place and support its ongoing evolution.
This bill provides for a renewed concept of community for future planning development. In this direction, place-making is defined by new concepts of participation and design, with a focus on sustainability and civic participation in meeting the variety of needs and demands for housing suitability.
In considering this future possibility, it is relevant to consider that when the Suburban Land Agency was created in 2017 it was only empowered to purchase leases of land in the ACT. The primary amendment in this bill removes the word “leases” from the provision that authorises the Suburban Land Agency to buy and sell land on behalf of the ACT government. Most land in New South Wales is held by its owners under freehold title. As members of the Assembly will no doubt be aware, this system of title ownership is different from the leasehold system we use here in the ACT.
This amendment will ensure that the Suburban Land Agency has the legal capacity to enter into contracts to purchase or sell land outside the ACT, in New South Wales, if
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