City of Greater Geraldton disputes Olive Street project will create ‘mini mansions’ on coast in Mahomets Flats

The City of Greater Geraldton has denied claims its Olive Street housing project will create “mini mansions” on the coast in Mahomets Flats, while clarifying return on investment figures will become clearer in the near future. Last year, the State Government committed $1.6 million towards creating seven four-bedroom houses on council land. The total cost was estimated to be $5.99 million. The city previously voted in favour of calling for tenders for the project, with a “rent-then-sell” model being endorsed. City documents indicated the return on investment would be between five and 8 per cent, with a total return of between $3m and $5m over the next 13 years. The city said it had intentions to rent the houses out as part of the Government Regional Officer Housing program, which would see key workers, including teachers, healthcare workers and emergency responders housed. At November’s council meeting, former mayor and independent candidate for Geraldton at this year’s State election Shane Van Styn led calls for more information regarding the housing project, including clarity on expected returns and the council’s decision to dedicate the space for key workers. During his questions, Mr Van Styn referred to the proposed houses as “mini mansions”, an idea the city has since rejected. The December council meeting minutes say the houses would be “standard GROH specification dwellings” to assist with the housing shortage. According to the minutes, the city said although housing was not necessarily the responsibility of local government, the economic growth locally was being impacted due to the shortage. “Australians and businesses who would like to move to Geraldton are finding relocating very difficult as they cannot find suitable housing,” the document stated. “The local community is also requesting the State to bring more teachers, police, nurses etc. to Geraldton to improve the area’s livability, which is difficult if suitable housing is not available.” The city also said the model was to help maximise its return on investment, with the State Government’s funds helping to reduce the risk. According to the document, once a tender has been endorsed, the tenderer’s price can be made public which will help clarify the expected return on investment. Tender applications for the Olive Street project close on Friday, January 24. Meanwhile, the city said it expected no other projects to be shelved as a result of constructing the houses.