Ask any resident if they think Bellingen Shire has changed over the last 5-10 years, and the answer will likely be an emphatic “Yes!”
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Although parts of the shire now look and feel different, the total number of people living here has not increased by much. From 2011–2016, the population only grew by 151 people and just 133 new houses were built.
Compare this to the boom experienced from 1976–1986 when 2923 people, many of them seeking bohemian, eco-conscious lifestyles, migrated here.
Sustained low growth or population decrease could have negative consequences for the shire.
Some of these impacts are already evident.
For example, wealthier (often retired or semi-retired) households are buying or renting much of the available housing stock, which means many low-middle income earners and young people are leaving for more affordable housing.
This places the shire at risk of losing its valued diversity and skewing the population further towards an ageing, non-working demographic.
Low growth or population decrease means fewer residents to shoulder the burden of maintaining or extending infrastructure, which means costs may increase or people may need to lower their expectations about the level of service.
On a positive note, a low growth future could mean greater self-sufficiency and reduced development pressure on the natural environment.
High or rapid population growth also presents significant challenges.
Negative impacts of rapid growth can include land clearing, loss of farmland and overloading of infrastructure.
Benefits could include more local business patronage and more housing choice. Population growth could also be a catalyst for new or improved infrastructure.
Given the many challenges we face, what is the best way to grow? How do we get a fair deal for residents?
Good strategic planning can help us prepare for change. Bellingen Shire Council is updating its Growth Management Strategy (GMS) to help guide future growth.
Council needs your local knowledge to help foresee and manage the impacts of change.
How and where do you want growth to occur? This is an important conversation we need to be having as a community.
We don’t need to accept rampant growth, but we do need to be realistic about change in order to proactively plan for our future.
Council will use feedback from this process to prepare a new Growth Management Strategy for the shire. To get involved visit the “Homes for Our Future” at create.bellingen.nsw.gov.au/homes-for-our-future
Rebecca Jardim is a senior strategic planner with Bellingen Shire Council.
