Developers have welcomed Griffith City Council's 2019 draft housing strategy report, which lays out a plan to tackle the city's worsening housing crisis.
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The strategy is a long time coming, according to property developer Zep Lanza, who said council should have done something about the housing shortage years ago.
"This is all commonsense stuff local developers have been saying for years," Mr Lanza said.
"It's annoying, because you tell them these things but until they get a fancy consultant to confirm it in a report, council don't want to do anything about it."
However Mr Lanza said he's in favour of most of the report's recommendations, which includes re-zoning land to boost housing supply - especially when it comes to smaller and more affordable properties.
It also recommends sweeping changes to council's Development Control Plan, which hasn't been updated in over a decade.
The proposed changes would relax regulations for developers and allow more wiggle room when it comes to building smaller and cheaper houses nearer to the town's centre.
"It's good they're trying to do the right thing," Mr Lanza said.
"If it had been done a long time ago maybe we wouldn't be in this position."
Mayor John Dal Broi admitted council had been "a little slow" on the uptake.
"I can't deny that we should have been on the mark a bit quicker," Councillor Dal Broi said.
"The lack of fit-for-purpose affordable housing has crept up on us over the last couple of years."
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Cr Dal Broi said the goal was to rapidly bolster the housing supply to make way for Griffith's growing population of workers and to account for the regular intake of seasonal backpackers.
"Some backpackers are crammed into accommodation that is far from desirable, and we need to do better than that," Cr Dal Broi said.
Cr Dal Broi said many of council's existing rules and regulations were "outdated" and needed to be loosened to encourage developers to start building.
"We've got to put the building blocks in place so developers can get in and start building," he said.
"We as a council must work closely with them and make sure not to put obstacles in their way."
A copy of the draft housing strategy can be found on the Griffith City Council website or at council's chambers.
Those wanting to pitch in their two cents have until 4pm on October 11 to send in their submissions, before the strategy goes to a vote.
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