Robinvale housing project shows the way, says Benham

MEMBER for Mildura Jade Benham says regions struggling with a lack of housing should be looking at the example set by the Swan Hill Rural City Council’s Robinvale housing project.

“It absolutely has the potential to be an illustration to other regional and rural councils around the state to what can happen if you just think outside the box,” Ms Benham told The Guardian.

In State Parliament last week Ms Benham backed a reasoned amendment to the Building Legislation Amendment Bill 2023, highlighting the chronic housing shortage affecting councils locally and across the state.

Ms Benham drew attention to the Robinvale housing project, which was a joint project between the Victorian Government and Swan Hill Rural City Council, putting four houses on the market by private treaty.

“It just came from a conversation between (former Swan Hill chief executive) John McLinden and I years ago at a housing seminar in Canberra in 2019, where I was kind of being a petulant child just saying, ‘Why can’t we build houses? Why not?’ And eventually, he went, ‘Yeah, we should just start building houses shouldn’t we?’” Ms Benham said.

“Now we have four houses that will fund the next four houses.”

Ms Benham said other councils should look at the example set by Swan Hill, as it could solve housing shortages across the state.

“It’s such a great project, it really is, and to see the four houses and two that have ‘under offer’ signs on them, so it’s really satisfying,” she said.

“It has been particularly satisfying for me because I’ve been able to see it through the whole way from conception to being part of council while they were built through COVID and all of those issues.

“And now as a state member, being able to sit here and see them be sold.”

Ms Benham said that more work needed to be done to attract more professional people to regional Victoria, with housing one of the main issues presenting a challenge.

“We are desperate for professionals in the regions – surveyors, engineers, planning staff, not to mention doctors and health professionals – but where to house them?” she said.

“We have a crisis and there’s no denying that’s what we have on our hands now.”