New rules that could bypass anti-development councils are likely to be considered by the NSW cabinet soon, although how they would work is unclear, according to the state’s property development lobby group.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported on Tuesday that the government was working on a plan for seven “priority development zones” around Sydney Metro train stations. The zones could supersede local planning rules, allowing bigger apartment buildings to be built than permitted now.
An artist’s impression of the Waterloo South redevelopment in Sydney, which will have a Metro train station. 
Spokespeople for Premier Chris Minns and Planning Minister Paul Scully declined to comment on the article.
Mr Minns, who was elected premier in March, has promised to increase the density of Sydney housing to help restrain or reduce the cost of housing. The average Sydney home is worth $1.1 million, according to CoreLogic.
Tom Forrest, the chief executive of lobby developer group Urban Taskforce Australia, said the Department of Planning was working on the plan, but it was unclear what rules would apply in the zones. Councils could be asked to enforce state regulations, he said.
“Our greatest fear is they would go with too few precincts,” Mr Forrest said. “I would say it is imminent. That’s why you’re getting leaks.”
The Herald reported the government plans to encourage more apartments and townhouses up to 1.2 kilometres from the centre of the precincts. Land could be rezoned at the same time owners request approval to build, instead of having to go through the processes sequentially.
NSW Premier Chris Minns at a Sydney train station in August.  Nick Moir
Some councils are likely to complain changing the rules would be unfair to existing residents, who would have to put up with busier roads and more crowded schools while long-standing plans to orderly grow suburbs are ignored.
Under a national housing accord between the state and federal governments, NSW has agreed to construct 75,000 houses and apartments a year between 2024 and 2029. About 50,000 will have to be in Sydney, according to developers. About 24,000 homes were built in the greater Sydney area in the 12 months ended March 2023.
The Sydney YIMBY group, which advocates for more housing, said it was concerned seven development zones would not be enough to meet housing accord targets.
“There are more than seven stations on the Metro alone that should get this upzoning, and we worry that places closer to the city like Hurlstone Park are going to be exempted entirely,” it said on social media.
Nine kilometres south-west of central Sydney, Hurlstone Park is in the City of Canterbury-Bankstown. Mayor Bilal El-Hayek did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Sydney Metro is a series of new train lines that the government says is Australia’s biggest public transport project.
The City & Southwest line, which is due to open from 2024, will link new stations – including Crows Nest on the north side of the bridge, Barangaroo on the western edge of the CBD and the inner south suburb of Waterloo – with upgraded stations on the already established line that runs from Sydenham with Bankstown, and includes Hurlstone Park.
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