PUBLIC HOUSING FUNDING
Christine Campbell, MP, Member for Pascoe Vale, has called for more funding to be put into public housing.
In an adjournment in Parliament last week, Ms Campbell called on the Minister for Housing, Richard Wynne, to ensure that the people of Pascoe Vale will benefit from the federal government announcement that $99 million of the stimulus package to be spent on maintenance for social housing.
“There is a growing need for public and social housing in my electorate. In the North West Metro area there are 15,512 people in total waiting for public housing, over 3,000 of these people are waiting for early housing. More specifically, the Broadmeadows housing office, which includes Pascoe Vale, has 3,253 waiting for housing and 444 waiting for early housing”, Ms Campbell said.
“Evidently there is an urgent need to improve supply. This stimulus package provides us with a unique opportunity to make an impact of the supply of social housing. As well as building new dwellings there is a need to assess the condition of existing public and social housing properties in my electorate to determine which properties can be upgraded”, Ms Campbell said.
“There are a number of public housing properties in my electorate that are currently not habitable for a range of reasons. However, by carrying out works to ensure that it is structurally sound and in good repair these properties could be put back into stock”, Ms Campbell said.
“There are also a number of housing associations and housing providers that are crying out for funding to assist them to upgrade their properties to meet the needs of their clients”, Ms Campbell said.
“It is important that all of our tenants living in public and social housing enjoy a basic level of comfort and security. It is also very important that the Government provide support to our housing providers and community organisations to ensure that their accommodation meets the needs of their clients”, Ms Campbell said.
In responding to Ms Campbell’s call for funding, the Minister for Housing, Richard Wynne, agreed that an important part of addressing the supply of safe and affordable accommodation was to take stock of what currently exists in public and community housing.
“In addition to building new dwellings it is vital to improve the quality of existing dwellings to enhance the comfort and safety for our tenants. The $99 million investment in maintenance provides us with a unique opportunity to carry out urgent repairs and maintenance to a range of public and social housing dwellings”, Mr Wynne said.
“To the end of June, $49.6million has been committed to projects across the state, many of which are already underway”, Mr Wynne said.
“There are two types of properties that will benefit from the investment in maintenance. The first is a property that is currently untenable and in-need of major maintenance work such as structural repairs. Bringing forward the upgrading to properties that have been waiting for maintenance repairs will have the immediate on the supply of public and social housing” Mr Wynne said.
“The second type of property that we are spending maintenance funds on is a property that only requires minor works such as carpeting and re-painting. Although these may seem like small change they will make a huge difference to the comfort and quality of life for tenants.
“What does this all mean for the people of Pascoe Vale? In the suburb of Pascoe Vale we are spending approx. $91,000, in Coburg approx. $114,000 in Glenroy approx. $208,000 and in Hadfield approx. $391,000”, Mr Wynne said.
“For example in the suburb of Pascoe Vale we have already completed internal and external painting works to 3 properties, and we are currently carrying out more substantial upgrades to 4 more townhouses that are two and three bedroom”, Mr Wynne said.