The federal, state, and local governments have a role to play in curbing the housing crisis in Naracoorte and its surrounding towns.
That’s the word from Shadow Minister for Regional South Australia, Nicola Centofanti, who revealed a state migration strategy was being developed to tackle the housing crisis in the regional towns.
Ms Centofanti told The News that the strategy would be made public once it was ready.
“The Opposition is working on a state migration strategy because we know the regional housing crisis is deeply intertwined with a rural skills shortage,” Ms Centofanti said.
She said skills shortage and a critical lack of housing were the two main issues raised more than anything else.
“We need to be smarter with future strategies and planning changes to make a real difference to housing in our regional communities, and every option must be explored thoroughly.
“I acknowledge that housing is an issue in the region, including Naracoorte. I know that there is a shortage of worker housing due to the demands of our strong meat processing and farming sectors, and a shortage of low-cost housing.”
Ms Centofanti said while the party acknowledged the housing challenges, there was no quick fix solution to this.
Naracoorte-Lucindale Mayor Patrick Ross said businesses that employed seasonal workers in the district have been calling for increased accommodations to fill labour shortages.
Mr Ross said urgent housing developments were needed in the area to cater for the increased migrant population finding a home and staying in the area.
A new Regional Key Worker Housing Scheme has been created by the SA government with the aim of creating a continuous pipeline of homes and, in the first instance, will facilitate the delivery of housing to attract and retain police, teachers, and healthcare workers in key country areas.
The pilot project will deliver approximately 30 homes for these key services across the Copper Coast, Riverland, Mount Gambier, Port Augusta, and Ceduna.
Premier of South Australia Peter Malinauskas said in many parts of regional South Australia, rental vacancy rates were tight, making it tougher for communities to get the people and the skills they needed to thrive.
“Not every country town has the same needs. This important work will be done in collaboration with each of these regional communities to ensure these measures are being rolled out in a sustainable way to address these individual needs in the long term,” Mr Malinauskas said.
This article appeared in the Naracoorte Community News.
