Sydney apartments to have fewer car spaces

Sydney apartments to have fewer car spaces

Posted on Tuesday, September 23 2014 at 11:26 AM

Homebuyers and investors trying to break into the booming Sydney market might soon find many off-the-plan apartments have fewer car spaces.

It’s part of new guidelines being introduced by the NSW Government, in a
bid to get more people to use public transport.

Minister for Planning Pru Goward is promoting the concept as saving
buyers up to $50,000, or roughly, the cost of a car space in Sydney’s market.

She says the NSW Government’s record investment in better public
transport is giving Sydneysiders more choice in where they want to live and how
they get around.

“The closer people live to public transport hubs, the less likely they
are to rely on cars,” Goward says.

“A car space can add up to $50,000 to the cost of a new apartment, so
providing more flexibility around car park requirements could lead to savings
of up to the same amount for homebuyers.

“Importantly, this change is restricted only to particular councils,
applies only to development within close walking distance of transport services
and strongly discourages councils from allowing residents of these buildings to
receive street parking permits.”

The areas include Ashfield, Auburn, Bankstown, Botany Bay, Burwood,
Canada Bay, Canterbury, City of Sydney, Hurstville, Kogarah, Lane Cove,
Marrickville, Leichhardt, North Sydney, Parramatta, Randwick, Ryde,
Strathfield, Waverley, Willoughby and Woollahra.

Updates to the policy and apartment design guidelines include:

–       Ensuring every new apartment has a balcony
and access to well-designed and functional shared open space

–       Allowing no car spaces in new apartment
buildings in certain council areas within 400 metres of a transport hub like a
train station or light rail stop

–       Greater protections from noise in
surrounding streets

–       More flexibility around design to suit
particular sites

–       Independent design experts to provide
advice to councils

–       Extension of the policy to include mixed
use and shop-top housing

–       A minimum size of 35 square metres for
studio apartments

–       New sections dealing with the adaptive reuse
of buildings to apartments.

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