Prometheus Thinks

Next time you meet with a DPHI Director and they seem overworked, it may be because they are carrying a significant share of the Department’s leadership load. NSW Planning is implementing what the Government describes as the most significant overhaul of the EP&A Act in a generation. That sits alongside the Housing Delivery Authority, Development Coordination Authority, Transport Oriented Development Program, Low and Mid-Rise Housing Policy, Housing Pattern Book, new Sydney Pl

Only the ACT and Western Australia are estimated to deliver their share of the Housing Accord target on time. Victoria is expected to follow six months later, Queensland by September 2030 and NSW by June 2031. There are still grounds for optimism. Most jurisdictions are expected to build more homes during the Accord period than in the preceding five years. The State of the Housing System report estimates NSW will deliver 258,000 homes during the Housing Accord period. However

I have just lodged Prometheus Planning’s submission in response to the Productivity Commission’s interim report on housing supply regulation. The Commission has identified the right lever, but its interim report confuses means and ends. It rightly concludes that land-use reform enabling greater urban density is likely to have the greatest effect on housing supply. Yet its reform directions prescribe particular planning controls without recommending the density outcome those c

It was great to get back out to Narrabri and Wee Waa in North West NSW, where I’ve been helping a local community prepare a Plan of Management. In between drop-in sessions, I also had the chance to visit Mount Kaputar National Park. This is an extraordinary landscape shaped by volcanic activity between 17 and 21 million years ago, which formed the Nandewar Ranges and the dramatic peaks of Mount Kaputar. From the summit, sitting at around 1,510 metres high, the views were amaz

Returning to my high school town for a summer weekend, what stayed with me most was not just the awesome food, amazing beaches or Jamberoo Adventure Park. It was the sense of community. Jones Beach was full of life, but the heart of Kiama Downs was also in the small retail strip nearby. The coffee shops, a doctor and a grocer. These commercial spaces help make community life just as much as parks and public open space. Too often, we treat community as something that only happ

Historically, Sydney’s North West and South West Growth Areas applied a standard of 2.83 hectares of public open space per 1,000 people -...

I went exploring the Gehl Door Average (GDA) in action in Maitland. Intrigued by the principles outlined in Jan Gehl's book Cities for...

This regulation has a purpose for providing a smooth transition between different land uses and building typologies. But, if we aim for...

Grabbing a morning coffee from a local favorite, I couldn’t help but notice the stark contrast between the facades of a modern building...

Thrilled to collaborate with Business NSW and Milestone Belanova on a practical how-to guide for medium to high-density residential...

In times of a housing crisis it seems all policy positions are on the table. Even for places with policies that go back to 1973. Oregon...

A bonus for affordable housing and a bonus for design excellence. Why not a bonus for 15 minute neighbourhoods? In 2009, the New York...

All the way back in 1998 (and expanded in 2013) Houston, Texas reduced their minimum lot size in residential zones from 464sqm down to...

In August 2023, the Ontario Auditor General released a report on the amendments made by the Toronto provincial government to remove...

In August 2023, Cleveland City Council became the latest US city to join the parking reform movement by removing minimum parking...

In August 2023, the city of Kingston fully repealed their zoning-based planning scheme and replaced it with a full form-based code...

California has a law that means that if a local government does not have a state-approved housing plan, then development applications...

In August 2023, the Pew Research Centre published data on housing preferences that showed a majority of Americans would prefer to live in...

In mid-2023 the Richmond Department of Planning and Development Review updated their planning ordinance to make it easier for dual...