Ten million dollars is up for grabs for regional Councils, local industry, employers and developers to help kickstart priority housing projects across country South Australia.
The State Government has now opened a Registration of Interest (ROI) process, which will allow regional stakeholders to submit projects for funding consideration.
The aim is to identify residential projects that deliver the greatest strategic value for the state but could benefit from targeted assistance from the State Government to get started.
Submissions are welcome from all relevant stakeholders, including local government authorities, regional employers, the development industry, and other peak bodies.
Examples of support include capital contributions to new infrastructure; leveraging investment in government housing to initiate a larger residential development; and facilitating partnerships that will deliver long-term worker housing in support of new projects or business expansion.
The development of the fund follows extensive conversations with the Local Government Association, regional councils and other business groups since the establishment of the Office for Regional Housing in February 2023.
An example of how the ROI model could potentially work is the proposed new housing development in Bordertown, which has seen the State Government partner with the Tatiara District Council to kickstart the project.
In order to be successful, applicants will need to demonstrate that their project aligns with regional housing priorities, will have economic and social impact, supports local industry and supply chain and has long-term sustainability and financial viability, among other factors.
The maximum assistance per proposal is $2 million. Submissions that are investment ready and can commence within 12 months will be prioritised.
Planning Minister, Nick Champion said SA’s regions contribute over $30 billion annually to the economy yet continue to face housing development challenges including limited infrastructure, high costs for materials and transport, and constrained local construction capacity.
“Without housing to support workers in critical industries such as farming, fishing, mining, manufacturing, and tourism those regional economies fail to fire and reach their full potential,” he said.
“This funding will provide opportunities for affordable, high-quality housing solutions that will assist with the ongoing growth and vitality of our regional communities.
I spoke with all the regional Councils to explain the opportunity we are offering with this ROI, and I look forward to achieving some promising results together for our rural centres.”
LGA President, Mayor Dean Johnson, said the new funds made available to councils and industry through this ROI process will give our regions much-needed support to begin to address the challenges of housing.
“Councils are already stepping up to the plate in many ways to assist communities including offering rate rebates to reduce developer risk, subsidising the sale of surplus council-owned land and directly investing in joint housing models.
The local government sector greatly values the partnership we have with the State Government and are pleased to play our part in helping tackle the issue of housing availability in South Australia through this initiative.”
Submissions will be open until 3 May 2024.
