Landcom celebrating 45 years as part of the fabric of NSW

Since 1976, Landcom has been part of the NSW development industry unlocking sites and collaborating with our partners to deliver over 100,000 homes for families across NSW.

When the NSW Government created Landcom 45 years ago, the intention was to moderate the housing market, stabilise land supply and support the development industry.

Over the decades we have created thriving and sustainable communities across New South Wales. By establishing strong relationships with our industry partners, we have delivered award-winning housing and innovative urban renewal projects.

From Little Bay in the east to Penrith in the west, Renwick in the south and Port Stephens in the north, Landcom has become part of the fabric of NSW.

As our state grows, Landcom continues to focus on creating healthy and sustainable communities for the people of NSW. We aim to demonstrate global standards of liveability, resilience, inclusion, affordability and sustainability in our projects through masterplanning and partnering.

Partnerships are key to our success

At the heart of Landcom’s success are our partnerships. We work hand in hand with industry, our partners in government and the not-for-profit sectors to help unlock development opportunities and support the economy.

We partner with organisations that share similar values and beliefs, have a history of delivery and success, and that respect resilient relationships with their stakeholders. Over the years our development partners have included public, private and institutional landowners, other developers, NSW Government agencies, local councils, Community Housing Providers (CHPs), infrastructure providers and project home builders.

We work together with our partners to create more affordable and sustainable communities for the people of NSW.

Creating housing diversity and supply

Through our projects, Landcom is addressing the challenge of providing homes that are more affordable for middle and lower income households. Whether on vacant land, or established sites, we are regularly relied upon by the NSW Government to manage strategic and complex residential projects.

Over 45 years we have pushed the boundaries to innovate in housing form and land development approaches. We have tested the market on new housing products to demonstrate viability and we share our learnings with industry.

Some demonstrated innovations include zero-lot boundary housing, reimagined terrace houses, ‘Fonzie’ flats or studios over garages, multi-occupancy big houses, compact dwellings and modern homes for smaller lot sizes. Our Design Guidelines and sustainability initiatives continue to improve house design, urban design, neighbourhood amenity and environmental outcomes to support sustainable and healthy communities now and for the future.

As housing supply continues to impact our community, our Housing Policy targets drive us to innovate further to deliver more universal housing, more diverse housing and more affordable housing. We are working with local councils, CHPs and Local Aboriginal Land Councils to enable the delivery of more affordable housing across NSW.

Sustainability in action

Over the last 45 years, there has been increasing recognition that sustainable development generates positive and lasting value for communities and the environment. Sustainability is not an element that is nice to have. Sustainability is an imperative.

Landcom’s approach has evolved over time, adapting to new knowledge, industry progress and community expectations. We firmly believe that the future lies in the design and delivery of climate resilient communities that demonstrate global standards of liveability.

As Landcom continues to drive a focus on low-carbon outcomes across our projects, we are also looking internally at our own operations and how we can continue to make positive changes. We are very proud to now be a certified Carbon Neutral Organisation, in accordance with the Climate Active Carbon Neutral Standard.

Our 100% Australian Carbon Credits purchased in 2021 form part of the Darling River Eco Corridor near Lowan in northern NSW, focused on restoring severely degraded agricultural land and regenerating native vegetation to benefit endemic species such as echidnas and woodland birds.

To read more about our sustainability achievements throughout FY21, see Landcom’s FY21 Sustainability Report.

Exemplar projects

In our anniversary year, we look back on some of our award-winning projects and uncover the challenges and achievements in creating more affordable and sustainable communities for the people of NSW.

Shared through project videos on our website and staff site tours, we celebrate our exemplar projects with pride. We are sharing project knowledge, innovation and learnings with our staff, industry and stakeholders to both celebrate and inspire - especially for the emerging young developers who will be responsible for the communities of the future.

The exemplar projects are selected from the over 220 projects Landcom has delivered since 1976. These 18 projects reflect the diversity of strategic, complex and innovative projects delivered since Landcom’s corporatisation in 2002. These projects reflect how partnerships and collaboration can achieve a shared vision:

• The opportunity to renew the derelict industrial area in Zetland into Green Square town centre was catalysed by the Airport train route for the Sydney Olympics and involved relocating government services and unprecedented consolidation and decontamination.
• Prince Henry at Little Bay involved reimagining a closed public hospital, achieving a state heritage listing and a masterplan that respected and celebrated the site heritage, and accommodating seven community groups.
• Hunterford at Oatlands innovated with housing diversity and proved that there was a suburban market for terraces, Fonzie flats and small lot compact housing.
• At Shellharbour we worked with Shellharbour City Council to achieve a commercial and entertainment centre link to support expansion of the town centre and resolve community issues.
• Every one of our exemplar projects has a proud story based on relationships, leadership, resilience and commitment.
• Every Landcom project demonstrates why Landcom is part of the fabric of NSW.

The future of our homes and communities – the new challenges

While our approach has changed over time, Landcom’s mandate to address housing affordability and supply housing continues to be as important as ever.

In this complex COVID-19 environment, our response is to innovate and rethink the future of housing, workplaces and urban design. We continue to work with industry, government and university partners to explore what might be a new normal in housing and community. We will continue to trial and learn from new ideas and approaches to meet the community’s changing needs and to support market and industry innovation.

“In 2021, as we continue to build on our achievements, we invite you to join us in celebrating Landcom’s 45 years of successful projects, partnerships and places.” 
- John Brogden, Chief Executive Officer