For public housing resident Edwina Keelan, the stakes of the New South Wales election are higher than for most – it may decide whether or not she gets to keep her home.
She was among the residents at the Franklyn Street public housing estate in Sydney’s Glebe told three years ago they would be relocated after the government slated it for redevelopment under its policy to fund more social housing by building private properties on public land.
But a Labor government would walk back the Coalition’s plan to sell the land and evict the tenants, and has left the door open to do the same for other public housing estates flagged for selling off where the contracts have not yet been signed.
“It would be a huge relief after a really stressful three years of not knowing what is going to happen to us or where we will go,” said Keelan, who has lived at Franklyn Street for almost 16 years.
The commitment is part of a broader policy adopted at Labor’s conference last year to legislate a moratorium on the future privatisation of public housing and increase public housing stock – including in the inner suburbs of Sydney. And where the government must rebuild or renovate, to rehouse tenants locally for the duration of the construction.
The Labor candidate for Balmain, Philippa Scott, said her first action if re-elected would be to ensure the people “who live in Franklyn street can stay in Franklyn street”.
“We will keep the public housing that already exists in our community and build more,” she said.
“All we’ve seen so far [under the Coalition] is the sale of people’s homes… and a promise that said more social and affordable housing is coming but it has not materialised.”
Labor’s shadow housing minister, Rose Jackson, said a Labor government would also “be looking very closely” at where public housing estates in Waterloo south and Explorer Street “are up to” after Guardian Australia asked what its plan to keep public housing in public hands would mean for the projects.
“If they put contracts that reflect the current proposals as they have been laid out in front of me to sign, I’m not signing them,” Jackson said.
The NSW government’s public housing policy seeks to build “more, and better” social housing by selling off public housing estates to build new residences that are split into 30% social housing, and 70% privately owned properties.
The redevelopment of Franklyn Street is part of this, with a proposal to build 130 social housing properties – about 20 more than currently on the site, and 295 private dwellings.
The government’s model fell under criticism last year after data for new social housing constructions showed it failed to meet its targeted increase of social housing stock, despite selling 4,205 social housing properties across the state since 2011.
A spokesperson for the minister for planning and homes, Anthony Roberts, said the model has created a 9% increase in “social homes” over the last decade.
“[The model is keeping] money in the pockets of taxpayers and delivering the services the state needs,” the spokesperson said.
Residents will have the opportunity to move back into the developed site once construction is completed. But where residents will be relocated to in the meantime and for how long has weighed heavily on the those affected, many of whom are elderly or vulnerable.
“It has been a lot of stress and it has impacted on my health,” Keelan said. “[Redeveloping Frankyln Street] is not a good option when it’s not going to build much more, and it’s going to be denser and smaller.”
Waterloo public housing resident Karyn Brown said for more than six years the residents have lived in a state of limbo after they were told they would soon be relocated. According to the redevelopment proposal, it will take 15-20 years.
“We are all aware that there’s 3,000 people that live here and we know there’s not 3,000 vacant properties for us nearby so it’s like ‘where are they going to send me?’,” she said.
“There will be hundreds of sighs of relief if they say we are not kicking you out.”
Geoff Turnbull, the spokesperson for REDWatch, a community group that focuses on public housing issues in Redfern, Eveleigh, Darlington and Waterloo, said he was cautiously optimistic about Labor’s plan to keep public housing in public hands and promise to build more.
“My main thing in terms of ending privatisation is what’s the alternative? It’s good to have aspiration, but where’s the money going to come from to do it?” he said.
Labor’s plan takes a sharp veer from the current government’s model for building public housing, which is self-funding.
Jackson said a priority in building more would be to identify land the government already owns given it was “by far the major cost”.
Scott said money for social housing would be allocated in the budget.
“[Public housing] is an investment, it should not be considered a burden or cost to our society.”
• This article was amended on 14 March 2023 to clarify the area covered by the REDWatch group.
