In Bradfield we cherish our natural environment and strong sense of community. We can ensure that new housing developments add to quality of life rather than destroying it.
In Bradfield, we cherish our beautiful national parks and bushland, our creeks and rivers, and our civic green spaces. Our natural environment and strong sense of community is what makes Bradfield the place we all love to live, work, and raise our families.
But this way of life is threatened by developments that are being pushed through with little consultation and little regard for our natural environment and neighbourhood character. There are too many examples of developments that have led to the loss of public and private green spaces, natural habitat, and biodiversity. The destruction of tree canopy both worsens the biodiversity crisis and creates heat sinks, which are untenable as our summers get hotter.
Cities in Canada and Europe have found solutions to ensure that medium-density housing adds to the quality of life and green space rather than destroying it. We can do the same.
We can’t solve the housing affordability crisis by forcing people to live on the distant outskirts of our major cities, far from employment and education opportunities. But new housing in Bradfield needs to be planned with the community involved, not forced on us.
I support new housing developments that are:
- Effective: Delivering shelter to those most in need – frontline workers, students, single-parent families, and ageing women – close to essential amenities and employment.
- Sensitive: Protecting areas of high biodiversity, conservation, and heritage value.
- Safe: Appropriate for our changing climate and our commitment to net zero by 2050.
- Transparent: Progressed in consultation with impacted communities and experts, not solely driven by real estate investment returns.