2. Housing and Settlement Strategy
• How do we ensure sustainable patterns of settlements and employment:
The development plan should be open to live-work proposals and any other manifestation of home-based businesses, especially within established towns and villages.
• Is there a settlement that could absorb more development?: There is a great demand for housing in Thomastown. Both for sale and rental. The area around Thomastown should be studied and zoned accordingly for high/low density.
• Density zoning is worth considering to help reduce sprawl and to encourage vibrant town centers. The development plan should be open to co-housing (housing co-op) developments.
• Should estates be phased?: phasing of a very large estate could help the town absorb the new citizens more effectively, ie. The schools’ enrollment could be better addressed instead of a large influx all at once. Theoretically, the first phase has a chance to develop a sense of community that could hopefully be extended to each new phase instead of one large mass all moving into an anonymous estate all at the same time.
• There is potential for smaller units for student rental or shared accommodation
• Cater for existing schools/education centres (School of Food, Grennan Craft School, Pottery Skills Schools, Wine Academy Language school, Grennan Equestrian school, Thomastown Community Kindergarten, St Marys Primary school, Grennan College).
• Key Development Areas of LAP to be reviewed.
• Address existing housing stock which is in disrepair/unused. Possibility of penalties.
• Utilise exist in housing stock.
• Develop living over shops in town centre.
• New developments to be of quality housing.
• Accessible housing
• Small cluster groups with a mix of housing type.
• Contemporary aesthetics referencing the Rural context
• Use of shared renewable resources for cluster group housing
• Cooperative type of housing
• Urban experience to be enhanced