Local Housing Strategy

Consultation has concluded

Murray River Council is experiencing rapid growth. Whether it be a reflection of current national trends showing rapid movement of people out of cities and into regional areas (like ours!), or the simple choice to make Murray River Council home, we have seen unprecedented demand for new housing over the last few years.

As a result, Council has developed a new Murray River Council Local Housing Strategy to manage the supply of housing within the region over the next 20 years.

The Strategy has been developed following an initial round of community consultation on local housing supply issues in late 2021 and is a direct action emerging from our Local Strategic Planning Statement (LSPS).

The two-part strategy outlines the key factors effecting housing supply and demand within Murray River Council and offers an implementation plan for land activation and housing delivery on a town-by-town basis.

In detail, it provides background on the issues and opportunities across the Murray River Council area and provides direction for the sequential release of residential land and a suite of tools for land consolidation and activation.

The Strategy is now being implemented.

Murray River Council is experiencing rapid growth. Whether it be a reflection of current national trends showing rapid movement of people out of cities and into regional areas (like ours!), or the simple choice to make Murray River Council home, we have seen unprecedented demand for new housing over the last few years.

As a result, Council has developed a new Murray River Council Local Housing Strategy to manage the supply of housing within the region over the next 20 years.

The Strategy has been developed following an initial round of community consultation on local housing supply issues in late 2021 and is a direct action emerging from our Local Strategic Planning Statement (LSPS).

The two-part strategy outlines the key factors effecting housing supply and demand within Murray River Council and offers an implementation plan for land activation and housing delivery on a town-by-town basis.

In detail, it provides background on the issues and opportunities across the Murray River Council area and provides direction for the sequential release of residential land and a suite of tools for land consolidation and activation.

The Strategy is now being implemented.

Consultation has concluded

  • Draft Local Housing Strategy - Update

    Draft Murray River Local Housing Strategy - Update

    24 August 2022

    Since the release of the 2021 ABS Census data on 28 June 2022, we have been busily working away at creating a Draft Murray River Local Housing Strategy.

    Council had hoped to have this draft ready for the September meeting (as per our mid August update), however through ongoing conversations with State Government, we are still still fine tuning the draft to best represent our local issues and create strong, integrated foundations for growth in Murray River.

    We now aim to have a draft ready for presentation at a Council meeting prior to the end of 2022. We want to make sure we get this right before we bring it to our communities for comments. We hope to have it to you for feedback in early 2023.

    Further updates to come.

  • Draft Murray River Local Housing Strategy COMING SOON!

    Draft Murray River Local Housing Strategy COMING SOON!

    16 August 2022

    Since the release of the 2021 ABS Census data on 28 June 2022, we have been busily working away at creating a Draft Murray River Local Housing Strategy which delivers everything we’ll need to meet our housing demands out to 2041. We are still fine tuning the draft, with the goal to have it ready for the Council meeting being held on 27 September 2022. At that meeting, the draft will be reviewed by our Councillors, and if they give it their tick of approval, the draft will be placed on public exhibition for our community to review and give feedback. We will be applying a two-prong approach to engagement for this exhibition phase with the relaxing of COVID-19 restrictions meaning we can now hold IN PERSON engagement sessions! To capture your comments, we will be using our online tools through this Your Say page and also holding informal ‘information sessions’ in a number of our townships where our community can view the draft and have a chat with the Housing Strategy team.

    Further updates to come closer to the September Council meeting date.

  • Draft Housing Strategy update!

    22 February 2022

    As we noted in November, our aim was to have the Draft Housing Strategy out for Phase 2 public consultation in February/March 2022. In early January 2022, while working towards this target, we were advised that the 2021 ABS Census data would be released to us in late June 2022. Given that the 2021 census data provides a crucial baseline for the Housing Strategy and the Populations Projections (which link into this Strategy) we have elected to wait until the updated census data can be factored into our Housing Strategy. With the level of change since 2019 for housing, population change, births, and deaths, it would be illogical to base the Housing Strategy and subsequent long term planning outcomes off outdated 2016 data.

    We will know more about the timing of this Strategy after June 2022, however we still aim to complete this project as soon as we can to facilitate the timely delivery of housing within our LGA, as required. You will have the opportunity to ‘have your say’ on the Draft Strategy with Phase 2 Consultation anticipated to occur around August-September (to be confirmed) and a Final Strategy to be ready to present to Council for endorsement around September - October 2022 (also to be confirmed).

    Watch this space!

  • Phase 1 of public consultation has CLOSED!

    Phase 1 of public consultation on the Housing Strategy has closed!

    Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to put forward their thoughts and ideas about housing in the Murray River Council area. We have had a fantastic level of community feedback throughout this time!

    We will now start preparing the Draft Housing Strategy taking into consideration your feedback from this first phase of consultation. The Draft Strategy will be presented to Council and agencies, and then you will get the chance to provide feedback on the Draft Strategy as part of Phase 2 public consultation (February - March 2022).

    If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Llyan for a chat.



  • 5 days of Phase 1 consultation to go!

    Housing Strategy – Phase 1 consultation CLOSES IN 5 DAYS!

    10 November 2021

    Thanks to those who have submitted their thoughts so far in this round of consultation. For those who are yet to share feedback; please don’t miss your chance to have your say on the future of housing and residential land in our area!

    Phase 1 of consultation closes 5:00pm Monday 15 November and is your chance to help us understand some of the issues that affect the provision of new housing.

    We know that things can change, and that change can happen fast. So, even if you have submitted thoughts to us in the past as part of separate strategies, enquiries, or submissions, to make sure that we are receiving only your most up to date ideas, we need you to submit your feedback during this phase of consultation to be considered in the preparation of the Draft Housing Strategy. This will also allow us to provide transparent reporting on all the feedback we receive during Phase 1 of this project, and factor in only your current ideas into the Draft.

    If you haven’t already, please use the tools on this Your Say page to share your ideas. Here you can take our quick survey, use the map pin tool to SHOW us your ideas, provide a written submission, or simply ask us a question.

    Once the Draft Housing Strategy has been prepared early next year, you will have the opportunity to provide further feedback as part of Phase 2 consultation.

    If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Llyan (see the "Who's listening" tab to your right).

  • Consultation is open!

    Phase 1 of public consultation for our Housing Strategy is open! Please take the 'Survey' and use the various tabs available to share your thoughts. We are also available via phone or email if you would like to have a chat.

    Please ensure you provide your feedback by 15 November 2021 so that we can incorporate your thoughts into our Draft Housing Strategy.

    Phase 2 of consultation will involve us sharing the Draft Housing Strategy we have prepared for you to make further comment. Information and updates about the project will be provided regularly on the home page and in this 'News Feed' tab.

    Due to the current pandemic, we will be unable to hold in person consultation (at this stage) during Phase 1. The safety of our community is our top priority. We will keep you updated about any information sessions or in person consultation that we are able to hold; as soon as we know, you will know!