Page 788 - Week 03 - Tuesday, 21 March 2017
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and economic benefits of living on the Northbourne rail corridor thus giving these people equality of access to your government’s light rail vision?
MS BERRY: I thank Mr Parton for his question. I should clarify that housing for public housing tenants will be provided and is being built and purchased along the corridor. In fact the ACT Labor government made a commitment to build a new Common Ground in Dickson, on the old Downer club site, which will house at least 20 community housing tenants and 20 social housing tenants.
Consideration was given to building public housing within the public housing that already exists. However, unfortunately we would not have met the deadline that was required under the ARI had we gone ahead with that. But that does not mean we are not building housing within the corridor. We are still building housing in the corridor and providing public housing tenants in the city options about where in the ACT they would prefer to live, whether that is in the city, Tuggeranong, Gungahlin, Belconnen or in the Molonglo Valley.
MR PARTON: Minister, you mentioned Common Ground, with 20 community places there. Where else on the Northbourne redevelopment corridor are we going to see public housing?
MS BERRY: I can inform the member that there has been public housing provided to 135 of the 326 public housing tenants who have moved out of their older public housing that was not suited to their needs: it was old, hard to keep warm, hard to keep cool in summer, and expensive to maintain.
Mrs Dunne: Point of order.
MADAM SPEAKER: Minister, please take your seat. Mrs Dunne on a point of order.
Mrs Dunne: The point of order is about relevance. The question was about where else on Northbourne Avenue there would be public housing, not what has happened to the public housing tenants.
MADAM SPEAKER: The minister was into her question by 20 seconds and she still has time to answer.
MS BERRY: Thank you, Madam Speaker. I just wanted to paint a picture of where public housing is being built across the ACT and to indicate to the member that we are providing housing within the city, within Lyneham, within O’Connor, within Dickson and in other areas of the corridor, where people will be able access, within walking distance if that is what they would prefer, light rail as a public transport option for them. We are also considering public housing all across the city. I can provide detail—I think I may have already provided it to you, Mr Parton—of where public housing exists within the city area and within the corridor. I can get that to you if I have not already.
MS CHEYNE: Can the minister give the Assembly a little bit more information about the six sites for new public housing dwellings across Canberra?
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