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New research from the Property Council of Australia reveals the “mishmash” of infrastructure charges across Sydney’s growth areas, with some of the highest being hit with big charges and a poor system for determining costs.
The council said that the research, originally conducted by Elton Consulting and supplemented with recently released population data from the ABS, showed areas of high growth need a better system for funding infrastructure.
“Sydney is growing and needs infrastructure, but we haven’t got the right funding system for delivering it,” said acting Property Council NSW executive director William Power.
“Currently, communities in high-growth areas are paying high infrastructure costs on their homes and this is not sustainable or equitable. These areas are quickly developing, and so, there is often a layer cake effect to the charges — some charges coming from the state government, others from local government — money drawn from multiple sources for much-needed infrastructure.”
Mr Power questioned the fairness of the current system.
“A charge placed on each and every dwelling as it is the only way to pay for infrastructure; however, the average household income in these areas is often lower than other more established parts of Sydney.
“The blame for this scenario does not lie with any particular level of government, but rather in a lack of focus and line of sight of what is being charged, for what infrastructure and for what community outcomes.”
He said that this is made worse by some councils administering up to eight different contribution plans.
“At the moment, no one has a complete view of what is being charged and for what outcome across greater Sydney, and this is resulting in higher charges in some areas than others.”
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