Big Tweed decision on tiny homes

TWEED councillors will tonight decide whether to ignore officers’ recommendations and pursue a dream of building 14sq m homes for the homeless.

Councillors want to mirror an initiative in Gosford and built cute cottages in suburban Tweed or Kingscliff to help transition people out of homeslessness.

The 14.4sq m homes include a kitchenette, bathroom, bed nook and living area that opens on to a little veranda.

However, for it to be approved, councillors will have to go against the advice of their own officers who say the homes would have to be built in suburban parks.

A council audit released last week revealed the nine sites proposed for the Tiny Homes Project were not suitable.

In February, councillors ordered staff to complete a land audit to find the right plot for the small-scale development.

Tweed Shire Council said the Gosford example would be ideal to follow as long as NSW Housing or a not-for-profit jumped on board.

The proposed lots in the Tweed shire included a 493sq m block at Yao St, Kingscliff, to a 1200sq m park at Cooloon Cr, Tweeds Heads.

Council’s director of planning and regulation Vince Connell said the Tiny Homes Project concept did not comply with the current zoning rules.

“It is not a neat fit within our planning scheme,” he said.

Mr Connell said most of the lots were parkland and councillors would have to weigh up the benefits of robbing the community of parks to build the homes.

Also, the council needed to complete a feasibility study as most blocks were in suburban areas where house prices were continuing to rise.

“A lot of these are pocket parks and there needs to be a cost-benefit analysis to determine the feasibility of the project and the social benefits of the park. It is not just a matter of finding a park anywhere, these (tiny homes) are for more marginalised groups and the people have to be close to services and public transport.”

Deputy Mayor Reece Byrnes, who proposed council staff complete the land audit, said he would not be making decisions just yet. “I’m willing to wait and see if the State Government have any land we can use before I make a decision.”