Our aspirations in Shape 2028

In 2018 our community aspired to create welcoming, accessible and affordable private and public spaces that foster good health and social interaction. To achieve these outcomes over the next 10 years, our community goals and strategies were identified in the CSP as:

Our community told us they want to maintain a village feel in our local centres, while enhancing our open spaces with more vibrancy and ambience. They expressed major concerns about housing affordability, particularly its effect on young people, families and key workers. Residents were conscious of the lack of housing diversity and limited short term housing for crisis accommodation.

It was recognised by the community that while many of their concerns were outside the direct control of Council, there was the opportunity to partner with local and state organisations to ensure the Northern Beaches remains a wonderful place to live, work and play.

Continuing the conversation

Our community continues to be passionate about the preservation of local and neighbourhood character, with a desire to maintain and enhance this in the future. High quality urban and architectural design are valued, especially for new developments or in areas of higher residential density and in town centres. Our community continues to desire well-designed spaces that are amenable to walking around, with better accessibility, safety and linkage for pedestrians. Streetscape design and beautification, more trees, footpath improvement and informal seating are important to the liveability of local communities. These sentiments shone through in the development of our community-led, award-winning Local Strategic Planning Statement: Towards 2040 which guides land use planning for the Northern Beaches over the next 20 years.

Housing affordability continues to be a key area of concern for our local community. Council adopted the Local Housing Strategy in April 2021 and an Affordable Housing Policy and Affordable Housing Contributions Scheme. The Local Housing Strategy outlines how and where housing will be delivered to meet the community’s needs now and in the future. The Affordable Housing Policy and Contributions Scheme were adopted to solidify our commitment to increasing the range and supply of affordable housing in the Northern Beaches to meet the growing and changing needs of our community, particularly for key workers and younger generations.

Council has been developing a series of ‘Place Plans’ which identify what the community values most in a particular local area and provides an action plan to allow changes that are aligned with the community’s current and future needs and aspirations. A Draft Place Plan for Avalon was developed in partnership with the community. Manly and Mona Vale will be the next centres to have Place Plans developed.

Our community maintains strong support for green spaces that can be sustainably used. Warriewood Wetlands and Curl Curl dog park are cited as excellent examples of the right balance between accessibility and environmental protection.

Property prices have surged on the Northern Beaches. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in more flexible working arrangements for many workers, which has resulted in higher demand for properties that offer positive lifestyle benefits a little further from the city. Rental prices have also been increasing, resulting in financial stress for renters in our community and the vision of owning their own home becoming less of a possibility. Some residents have shared that they would have to move out of area if they were to purchase a home, while others are concerned that their children will have to leave the area.

Despite concerns about housing prices, there is a general resistance to development. There are different opinions on how development should be managed. Some residents believe increased height around strategic centres would provide an opportunity for more dwellings in suitable spaces, while others are opposed to any increase in building heights.

There are particular concerns about development in metropolitan rural areas (MRAs) due to bush fire risks and transport access, and a preference for infill development in existing urban areas rather than develop MRAs. This has been raised by many residents in relation to NSW Government proposals to develop Ingleside.

There is general agreement from the community that more sportsgrounds are needed. However, there are a variety of opinions on how to best manage and prioritise local needs. There is also opposition to impacting the natural environment in the creation of new sporting facilities.

Our residents want to ensure that the existing lifestyle and quality of life is maintained regardless of any development. This is especially true for the relaxed, coastal, and family friendly character of the area. We have an opportunity to achieve this by focusing on the ‘missing middle’ ie. diversifying housing opportunities through medium density development such as low rise dual occupancies and terrace houses.

Our community has shared aspirations for more centre activation, such as places to gather and relax. This includes better restaurants, bars and cafes, more commercial diversity and local shops, better community activities and fewer vacant shops.

Our strategic centres are spaces which will assist us with affordability challenges and provide an opportunity to build vibrant places for our community. For example, Frenchs Forest provides a wonderful opportunity to create a new dynamic town centre with new homes, affordable dwellings, public open spaces and easier walking and cycling connections to foster a safe, connected and healthy community. Other strategic centres include Manly, Dee Why, Brookvale and Mona Vale.

The opportunity for open space to be accessible all hours including when not in use for official sports has been raised by the community. Suggestions have also been made around utilising school sporting fields out of school hours to support a healthy, active community.