The call by planners to include seniors' housing, including residential aged care and co-located aged care and independent living, in the new building zones around 37 railway stations as part of changes to the NSW Housing SEPP has been agreed.
The seniors' housing bonus, which includes bonus floor space ratio incentives of 15% for independent living units, 20% for aged care and 25% for co-located, to encourage seniors' housing developments in higher density areas, will now apply to all R1 (General Residential), R2 (Low-Density Residential) and R3 (Medium Density Residential) zones on land where the NSW Transport Oriented Development applies.
Simon Furness (pictured), Uniting's Director of Property and Housing, said it welcomed the inclusion of the senior housing bonus in addition to the FSR and height provided in the TOD SEPP.
"This is great news for our industry," he said.
"Government policy makers have previously recognised that intervention is needed to ensure seniors housing can compete with market residential in the development of land. With the NSW Government focus on increasing density and improving affordability, there is a risk that seniors housing will be left behind relative to other residential uses.
"Retirement Living needs to be recognised as a form of affordable housing. Providing more retirement living at density, in places where older people want to live, is an important factor in making housing more affordable and ensuring housing diversity. We therefore urge policy makers to apply the In-fill Affordable Housing Bonus (30/30/15 and 20/20/10) to retirement living developments."
The first stage of the NSW Government’s Transport Oriented Development (TOD) planning reforms has been implemented through an amendment to the State Environmental Planning Policy (Housing) 2021 - TOD (the Housing SEPP) gazetted on Monday, 29 April.
The amended planning controls will apply within 400 metres of 37 stations to deliver more affordable homes.
The building height for residential flat buildings will be limited to six storeys, with the potential to add the seniors' housing bonus.
"With the adoption of the 20%-30% FSR bonus in the Housing SEPP for in-fill affordable housing in December 2023, a realignment of the 15%-25% FSR bonus for seniors housing is critical for the future development prospects of the retirement and aged care industry in NSW," said Ethos Urban Director Daniel West .
"Additionally, in high density zones the fixed 3.8m height bonus for seniors housing is blown out of the water by the 30% height bonus for in-fill affordable housing. Without an urgent realignment in the seniors housing bonus to re-establish its planning advantages over other forms of residential development (its underlying intent), I fear there will be little to no new seniors living or aged care development in and around our city and town centres."
He added it was though paramount to the future development of seniors housing that the seniors housing bonus applies in addition to the Floor Spaced Ratio and height provided by the TOD SEPP.
"This was not mentioned in any material released prior to the gazetted amending instrument today, so is very welcome news for which DPHI should be commended," Daniel said.
