Council declares no support for South Dural proposal

Hornsby Shire Council resolved at last night’s meeting to ask the Greater Sydney Planning Proposal not to proceed with the South Dural Planning Proposal.

The proposal sought to have rural land in Dural rezoned as residential, which would have allowed for 2,900 new dwellings to be built.

Council has never openly supported the proposal, but had indicated it would consider supporting it as long as appropriate infrastructure – particularly for roads and utilities – was part of the development.

An independent peer review has revealed this infrastructure would not be possible without significant financial input from the NSW Government, which the Government is not prepared to provide at this time.

“We are not against development, as we are all too aware of the housing shortage that is making the great Australian dream of home ownership a distant fantasy for too many people,” Hornsby Shire Mayor Philip Ruddock said.

“I want to make it clear, though, that we will only support responsible development that is accompanied by the appropriate infrastructure.”

The Department of Planning and Environment has also indicated it will not support the proposal.