An urban design researcher says downsizing some of Perth’s golf courses could create almost 90,000 new homes and help address the affordable housing crisis in the city.
Key points:
- Julian Bolleter says governments should consider opportunities before golf courses are sold for commercial purposes
- He said recreational space could be maintained, but that it should be reduced
- A resident opposed to such a development proposal in Perth says golf courses “have a right to exist”
Julian Bolleter, a researcher and deputy director of the Australian Urban Design Research Center at the University of Western Australia, says redevelopment would not necessarily require golf courses to close.
“Just by turning 18-hole golf courses into nine-hole golf courses, to our calculation, you could yield some 87,000 new dwellings,” Dr Bolleter said.
“Which is many, many times more than the number of people on the waiting list for social housing in Western Australia.”
Figures from the Real Estate Institute of WA show rental vacancy rates hit a record low of 0.6 per cent in December.
More than 30,000 people were on the Department of Communities’ waiting list for public housing last year.
Dr Bolleter, whose research has focused on designing multifunctional public spaces, said reducing the size of some golf courses would allow them to retain existing biodiversity while creating new public spaces and some social housing.
He said the most suitable courses would be located in the inner-suburban core, near amenities, employers and public transport.
Dr Bolleter said it was important to consider which courses might be suitable for residential housing because they could otherwise be sold off for commercial redevelopment, particularly if the clubs were in financial difficulty.
“What I’m saying is we would want to get ahead of the curve,” he said.
“Do some planning and make sure that when it happens it’s for the greatest community good, for biodiversity, for open space, for affordable housing.”
‘A right to exist’
But recent attempts to redevelop Perth-area golf courses for housing have faced fierce opposition from residents.
A proposal to redevelop part of The Vines Resort in the Swan Valley would involve the removal of greens to make way for new residential dwellings.
The Vines Residents and Ratepayers Association is running a campaign against the development, which it says will have a “huge” impact on wildlife, lifestyle and recreation.
Association representative Rob Bradbury said additional housing was not needed in a part of the city where extensive development was already underway.
He said any proposal to redevelop golf courses for housing should consider the impact on residents in the area.
“You don’t just destroy a golf course that people know and love, and destroy the wildlife that people come to see, just for cheap housing,” Mr Bradbury said.
“Australia has a lot of space — the golf courses have a right to exist and a need to exist.
“It’s not just a convenient way to create a new house.
“It’s not what it’s for.”
The Vines Resort did not respond to requests for comment before ABC’s deadline.
Last year in the City of Cockburn councilors rejected an application to redevelop the local golf course into housing after public backlash against the project.
The WA Planning Commission could still override their decision to approve the project.
Last year in the United States Californian legislators rejected a bill that would have provided grants as an incentive for developers to convert golf courses into housing and public open spaces.
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