SINGAPORE: A group has started work on an innovative social/disability housing community project in a regional town.

Earthworks began in February for the 29-unit complex on the corner of Sanita and Francis Streets. Set across three buildings, it will comprise 18 one-bedroom and 11 two-bedroom units, including two fully adaptable homes designed to meet the needs of people with a disability.

The two-storey development replaces four now demolished single-storey houses on the 3500 square metre site owned by Homes NSW.

The authority won council approval for the project in January, 2025.

A Homes NSW spokesperson said the units would provide “safe and secure” accommodation for about 50 residents and help address the social housing waitlist in Goulburn.

ACT-based Monarch Building Solutions is undertaking construction, which is expected to be finished by May, 2026. The company is employing local subcontractors.

The 8.9 metre high buildings will adjoin single-storey houses in Sanita and Francis Streets. In DA submissions, nearby residents raised concerns about the development’s scale, overshadowing, traffic and parking, potential anti-social behaviour, safety and security, decrease in property valuation and privacy, among other aspects.

In response to privacy concerns and council comments, Homes NSW said it would use frosted glass on some western elevation windows. Overlooking into neighbouring yards had been minimised through window placement and landscaping, including screen plantings along boundaries. However in planning documents, the authority acknowledged overshadowing would occur to two neighbouring houses at various times during the day.

The development is part of a wider program to replace ageing public housing in Goulburn.

Homes NSW says a total 55 new houses are on the way, with 41 under construction.

In June, 2025, Goulburn Mulwaree Council approved a DA for 14 new units at 38-42 Gerathy Street. Three single-storey houses, owned by Homes NSW, were to be demolished. The new residential flat building will comprise six one-bedroom and eight two-bedroom units, including two that are adaptable for people with disabilities.

The DA generated similar concerns to the Francis Street project when notified to neighbours.

Work on the maximum 8.5m high building is due to start later this year and be completed by 2028.

A further 12 social houses are being built in Allison, Wyatt, Lansdowne and Albert Streets.

The state government says it is investing $6.6 million to deliver 8400 modern social homes across NSW.

“Investing in social housing strengthens regional communities, supports local jobs and ensures people can stay connected to the places they call home,” Regional NSW Minister Tara Moriarty said.

“People in regional NSW deserve the same access to secure, high-quality housing as anybody else, and that’s exactly what we’re delivering in Goulburn.”

The city has 370 people on the social housing waitlist, including 46 ‘priority applicants’ such as victim survivors of domestic and family violence.

In recent years, Homes NSW has replaced aged social housing in Rhoda Street and Hume Street.

Homes NSW previously struck a memorandum of understanding with Goulburn Mulwaree Council to build more social housing in the city.

However, in April, 2025, the council backtracked on an earlier decision to swap land on the corner of Howard Boulevard and Gibson Street with Homes NSW. The authority wanted to build about 20 social homes on the site. In return, the council would inherit land at 257 Gibson Street, which it already maintained.

In December, 2025, councillors voted to retain the Howard Boulevard park in council hands, after residents’ lobbying.

A Homes NSW spokesperson previously told councillors there was “an urgent need for more seniors housing in Goulburn.”

The average household size was two people, but seniors were living in three and four-bedroom homes that were more than 50 years old.

In addition, he said 78pc of the social housing priority list in 2025 was for two-bedroom homes.

Housing and Homelessness minister, Rose Jackson said every new home completed across NSW was “a significant step towards a fairer, more inclusive state where everyone has the dignity having access to safe, secure, and affordable housing.”