Maitland council may be sitting in limbo due to the imminent announcement of a merger.
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Councillors and council staff are in a grey area waiting for the State Government to make an announcement about the council’s fate – if it will stay a stand-alone council or merge with Dungog.
This cloud of uncertainty has not stopped the organisation moving forward to keep this city great.
A decision at last week’s council meeting to push ahead with the acquisition and demolition of houses in Central Maitland is keeping the affordable housing ball rolling to bring more people back to live in the city’s centre.
Maitland’s residential heart may soon be beating again with a council plan to return 4000 residents to live in the city centre.
Today a total of 1500 people call Central Maitland home compared to the 5500 people who lived there prior to the 1955 flood.
Council’s campaign to accommodate developers willing to deliver affordable housing project means that owning a house is now very much in the reach of many folk who want to call Maitland home.
Fairfax Media reported in June this year that house prices in Australia will fall by about 10 per cent over 2019 and 2020, according to a new report, but local real estate agents say it is unlikely to occur in Maitland.
A report for the first half of 2016 said the Hunter Valley property market showed sustainable growth in recent years with the past 24 months seeing house median prices up 3.5 per cent, and land median prices up 11.7 per cent.
With young couples and families struggling to save a housing deposit for properties in the mainstream market, affordable housing in Central Maitland could make their property dreams become reality.
In 2013 council secured $11.3million of federal funding to realign and upgrade Athel D’Ombrain Drive as a means to support the development of affordable housing.
Mayor Peter Blackmore does not want the affordable housing term confused with low cost or government housing.
He said council has been proactive in dealing with developers and that there is strong interest to build more properties.
Construction techniques have home a long way since 1955.
It’s time Maitland shook off the “flood city” tag and moved on to promote Central Maitland as our new residential heart.
