Landmark project to alleviate housing stress

Last published on 08 Jun 2021 

The first of more than 400 people have received the keys to their new home in Redfern
following the completion of one of the state’s largest social and affordable housing projects.

Minister for Families, Communities and Disability Services Alister Henskens said the 162-unit development will alleviate housing stress and provide critical support for those who need it most.

“Secure housing and support helps people maintain a healthy lifestyle and empowers them to pursue employment and education goals,” Mr Henskens said.

“This project is part of a strong pipeline of new homes being delivered across NSW to provide safe and secure housing for the people in our community who need it most.”

The 18-storey building on Gibbons Street features a mix of one, two and three-bedroom units, ground floor retail and is close to transport, shops and services.

Community housing provider St George Community Housing (SGCH) delivered the $85 million project in partnership with the NSW Government.

The project was supported with finance from the National Housing and Finance Investment Corporation and land from the City of Sydney, and has an 8.3-star rating under the Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme.

Minister for Water, Property and Housing Melinda Pavey said the development will include a new SGCH office, shared open space and a community hub to connect tenants to opportunities and support services.

Not only does this project have good design outcomes that complement and enhance the local streetscape, it’s helping create stronger communities by providing new social housing blended within well located existing suburbs,” Mrs Pavey said.

SGCH Group CEO Scott Langford said the development has employed more than 1,000 tradespeople throughout the lifecycle of the project.

“This project offers a stable and affordable springboard to opportunity for low income workers and other members of the community,” Mr Langford said.

“Given the location in Redfern, we have committed a target of 25 per cent of allocations to Aboriginal households, helping connect local people to local opportunities.”

City of Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore said increasing the amount of affordable rental housing available for lower income households is a priority.

“There is a pressing need in the City for affordable rental housing for lower income households, and this need has been intensified by the pandemic,” Cr Moore said.

“When the Gibbons Street depot became redundant to our needs, we were glad to sell it to SGCH at a discounted rate expressly for social and affordable housing.

“SGCH has a fine track record over 35 years, providing about 7,000 homes across Sydney housing 12,000 people.”

Lendlease Building CEO Dale Connor said Lendlease is focused on supporting
governments to solve the challenges of social and affordable housing.

"Gibbons Street is our first project of scale in this space and will set a precedent for what social and affordable housing can look like in Australia.”

The Redfern development forms part of SGCH’s 560-unit pipeline in the NSW
Government’s Social and Affordable Housing Fund program.

Download Media Release: Landmark project to alleviate housing stress (PDF , 187.9 KB)