Further to our previous articles on the SEQRP, we pointed out that the recently released SEQRP consultation report had not addressed the issues that we had raised in various comprehensive submissions to the Queensland Government. Our last post ‘No Tall Order’ questioned how realistic it is to suggest that approximately 100,000 new apartment dwellings exceeding 9 storeys in height will be constructed on the Gold Coast to the year 2046.

In this post we examine the ‘Southern Inter-Urban Break’ between Pimpama and Ormeau on the Gold Coast, and ask whether it remains relevant in the midst of the current dwelling supply crisis.

THE ISSUES WE RAISED

Zone Planning Group lodged a number of SEQRP submissions with the State questioning the relevance of the ‘Southern Inter-Urban break’ which sits between Ormeau and Pimpama on the northern Gold Coast. We queried why the retention of the Southern inter-urban break had been prioritised above the provision of additional greenfield housing in the Pimpama – Ormeau area, and tabled a report prepared by our colleagues at Saunders Havill Group which demonstrated that approximately 15,000 new lower density ‘slab on ground’ dwellings could be constructed within a defined area labelled the Kingsholme Growth Area, comprising part of and adjoining the Southern inter-urban break, in a manner which doesn’t compromise environmental values or place future residents in areas affected by significant natural hazards. The development of any area involves balancing its opportunities and constraints – the Southern inter- urban break should be no different in this regard.

Our colleagues at Alder Group will release the report in due course, and a link will be provided in the comments below. In our submissions we pointed out that the Southern Inter-Urban Break has access to:

  • The existing Ormeau Railway Station on the Gold Coast- Brisbane line.
  • An existing M1 interchange at Mirambeena Drive.
  • District shopping facilities at Ormeau and Pimpama, and regional shopping facilities at Coomera.
  • Numerous State Schools and Private Schools.
  • The under capacity northern wastewater treatment facility.

We also pointed out that unlike the Northern Inter-Urban Break, the land in question is not separating one City from another, as both sides are located in the City of Gold Coast. What is its purpose?

And importantly, large parts of the Southern Inter-Urban Break are flood free and constraint free, and could be developed in a way which do not compromise, but instead enhance environmental outcomes in the locality.

We provided an example to the State of the nearby Gainsborough Greens development undertaken by Mirvac, which was initially located outside the SEQRP’s urban footprint in the original 2004 version, but was subsequently, through a previous SEQRP review process, included in the urban footprint. This SEQRP change facilitated the sensible development of residential land in a manner which provided new housing in locations which were free of natural hazards, but which also provided the financial incentive for the rehabilitation of formerly degraded land, which is now recognised as being an environmental success and a far superior environmental outcome than originally anticipated. Without the financial incentives to justify large expenditure on environmental rehabilitation, such outcomes are very unlikely to occur.

SO WHAT IS THE SOUTHERN INTER-URBAN BREAK?

An inter-urban break, as the name suggests, is a break in urban development which is intended to facilitate greenspace for visual amenity and regional landscape purposes. The SEQRP currently has 2 inter-urban breaks, being the relatively large ‘Northern inter-urban break’ located between Caboolture and Beerwah north of Brisbane, and the relatively small ‘Southern inter-urban break’ located between Pimpama and Ormeau on the north Gold Coast.

The original version of the SEQRP from 2004 had 5 inter-urban breaks, however 3 have been removed in the interim period through successive versions of the SEQRP.

SEQRP Southern inter-urban break

When driving down the M1 between the Gold Coast and Brisbane, or commuting between the two cities on the Gold Coast – Brisbane railway, you may not have been aware that a southern inter-urban break even existed. The area in question sits between large acoustic barriers and heavily vegetated verges on either side of the M1 which prevents an easy rural/urban distinction from being made. The southern inter-urban break has a width of between 3 and 5 kilometres at its narrowest point, and then broadens out to the suburbs of Kingsholme and Willow Vale to the west, and Norwell, Pimpama and Coomera to the east. The area contains extensive tracts of cleared, flood free land some of which is used for agriculture land, or land which is utilised for larger Rural Residential allotments.

As to the origins of the Southern Inter-Urban Break; why it is there and what it aims to achieve; these objectives appear to have been lost in the midst of time. A sensible and detailed analysis of 3 of the original 5 inter-urban breaks has resulted in their removal, but the Southern Inter-Urban Break is stubbornly holding on based on historical origins rather than considering the current significant housing supply crisis facing the Gold Coast. Despite hanging on for dear life, the Southern Inter-Urban Break doesn’t get anywhere near the same recognition as the ‘Northern Inter-Urban Break’ in the new SEQRP.

THE RESPONSE WE GOT

Our review of the 420 page plus SEQRP consultation report indicates that the issues raised in relation to the Southern Inter-Urban Break were not considered or addressed, despite being acknowledged as being received by the State. The issues we raised remain unanswered.

THE FINAL SEQRP OUTCOME FOR THE SOUTHERN INTER-URBAN BREAK

In our last SEQRP post, we identified that the final adopted version of the 2021-2046 SEQRP takes a quite different approach to dwelling targets than its predecessor 2017-2041 version.

To refresh your memory, the most recent SEQRP does away with the 2 mapped areas for the Gold Coast which were referred to as the ‘Expansion/ Greenfield’ area, and the ‘Consolidation/Infill’ area, and also does away with the 80% consolidation and 20% infill targets being applied to the target of 158,900 new dwellings to 2041.

Our last SEQRP post highlighted that the new 2021-2046 SEQRP replaces the 80% consolidation and 20% expansion targets with specific targets relating to 4 specific dwelling types over this 25 year period, being:

  • Detached Dwellings (1-2 storey);
  • Low-Rise Attached Dwellings (1-3 storeys);
  • Medium-Rise Attached Dwellings (4-8 storeys); and
  • High-Rise Attached Dwellings (9+ storeys).

SEQRP 2023 Dwelling Typologies

We also highlighted in our last SEQRP post that the new SEQRP raises the anticipated future dwelling supply on the Gold Coast from 158,100 dwellings to 161,700 dwellings (an additional 3600 dwellings) and anticipates the following dwelling growth targets for each respective dwelling type:

  • 11% of total dwellings will be detached dwellings (17,787 dwellings)
  • 17% of total dwellings will be Low-Rise dwellings (27,489 dwellings)
  • 10% of total dwellings will be Medium-Rise dwellings (16,170 dwellings), and
  • 62% of dwellings will be High-Rise dwellings (100,254) – High Rise being defined as 9 storeys or higher.

 

SEQRP 2023 Gold Coast LGA Dwelling Diversity Targets

The target of 11% of total dwellings to 2046 being ‘Detached Dwellings’ – i.e. 17,787 dwellings; and 17% of total dwellings to 2026 being ‘Low-Rise Dwellings’ is of particular interest to this discussion regarding the ‘Southern Inter- Urban Break’.

The 2023 Gold Coast Dwelling Supply Study conducted by Zone Planning Group , Michael Matusik , BIOME Consulting Pty Ltd and Zone Landscape Architecture conducted a physical stocktake of land in the ‘greenfield’ or ‘expansion’ part of the City of Gold Coast based on the mapped areas contained in the 2017-2041 version of the SEQRP, utilising Nearmap aerial photography from April 2023.

View the 2023 Greenfield Dwelling Supply report here.

Amongst other things, this report concluded that as of April 2023, there was sufficient land in the SEQRP’s ‘greenfield’ area of the City to accommodate 4,808 detached dwellings at a density of less than 25 dwellings per hectare. We concluded that this form of development has a high probability of being constructed to 2041 because it is attractive to the market. This form of development equates to the ‘Detached Dwelling’ typology included in the 2021-2046 SEQRP.

The report also concluded that there was sufficient greenfield land in April 2023 to accommodate 5734 ‘attached’ dwellings exceeding 25 dwellings per hectare which also have a high probability of being constructed to 2041 – generally equating to the ‘Low-Rise – Attached’ typology in the 2021-2046 version of the SEQRP.

Based on our 2023 study, the lion’s share of land in the City capable of being developed for Detached Housing is located in the former ‘greenfield/expansion’ area identified in the 2017-2041 version of the SEQRP, and not in the former ‘infill/consolidation’ area. That stands to reason, as the vast majority of land in the infill/consolidation’ area has already been consumed for one urban purpose or another.

It was also concluded that a 50% of all greenfield/expansion dwelling supply was contained within 3 residential projects, being Skyridge at Worongary, Coomera Quarter at Coomera, and Calypso Bay at Jacob’s Well. In other words, the remaining undeveloped land for detached dwellings is in highly concentrated ownership.

In summary, the 2023-2046 version of the SEQRP anticipates that sufficient land exists for 17,787 detached dwellings to be constructed in the City to 2046, whereas our 2023 study concluded that there was sufficient land for 4,808 detached dwellings.

Even if we are wrong and there are somehow unexplored pockets of undeveloped land in the former ‘consolidation’ part of the City which can accommodate detached dwellings, it is likely that the City currently has a deficit of some 10,000 detached dwellings, relative to the targets for this typology identified in the recently introduced 2023-2046 SEQRP.

SO WHAT HAS THAT GOT TO DO WITH THE SOUTHERN INTER-URBAN BREAK?

As discussed earlier, our colleagues at Saunders Havill Group produced a report which was supplied to the Queensland Government as part of various submissions made in relation to the 2021-2046 SEQRP consultation exercise, which demonstrated that it was possible to create approximately 15,000 affordable ‘slab on ground’ dwellings in the Southern Inter-Urban Break, without compromising natural hazard or environmental attributes. This is demonstrated through the

purple areas shown below. In fact the environmental attributes of the area could be enhanced through the financial incentives provided through urbanisation.

Kingsholme Growth Area Potential Developable Area (Source: Saunders Havill Group)

As discussed above, the final version of the 2021-2046 SEQRP anticipates 17,787 detached dwellings to be constructed on the Gold Coast to 2041.

We are confident that there is insufficient zoned and physically unconstrained land on the Gold Coast to achieve this target, and that the likely outcome will be a deficit of approximately 10,000 detached dwellings. That in itself raises significant questions about the accuracy of the SEQRP and its underpinning assumptions.

The Southern Inter-Urban Break represents that last significant greenfield development opportunity in the City which is ‘well located’, rich in urban resources, substantially free of natural hazards, and able to be developed in a manner that does not compromise environmental outcomes, but could instead enhance them.

Within the 2021-2046 period envisaged in the SEQRP, it would be possible to, for example, establish 10,000 detached dwellings and 5,000 attached dwellings within the Southern Inter-Urban Break, which would make a decent inroad into the nominated dwelling supply targets for the City and assist with reaching the current, overly optimistic targets being proposed.

We think it is time to have a clear think and rational review of the idealistic notion of a Southern Inter-Urban Break, and reconsider the use of this land to provide low rise, affordable housing into a market which is in crisis.

We are all aware that the City is hemmed in by the NSW border in the south, the Ocean to the east, the mountains to the west, and other local government jurisdictions facing the same problems to the north, and consequently the Gold Coast will inevitably run out of expansion land. But why not investigate/study what remains in a practical and sensible manner?

We will examine what the future may hold for urban land west of the mountains in the Scenic Rim LGA in our next post.