Windale residents' fears that their homes will be sold-off once rezoned will be heightened when they discover the NSW government has netted $46.7 million from social housing sales in the adjoining local government area over the past decade.
Newcastle state MP Tim Crakanthorp says records show 75 social housing property sales in the Newcastle local government area between 2011 and late 2019 totalled $46.7 million.
"This government has a track record of selling off social housing faster than it can be replaced," he said.
Ms Crakanthorp said the government was "certainly taking their time to reinvest it into new stock", which made "the possibility of more social housing being sold in the region is very concerning".
"There are already 1700 people waiting for social housing in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie, and unless this government gets on with it this list will only continue to balloon," he said.
Perhaps even more concerning for Windale residents is the $333 million the government made from the sale of Land and Housing Corporation properties statewide in 2018-19.
In a response to budget estimates questions in October, Property Minister Melinda Pavey said the proceeds from 352 dwellings sold would be "reinvested to fund maintenance and build new fit-for-purpose contemporary social housing".
But she also said the government projected the Land and Housing Corporation selling 429 dwellings in 2019-20, 345 dwellings in 2020-21, 368 dwellings in 2021-22 and 368 dwellings in 2022-23.
The projections reflect the recent growth of social and affordable housing property managers like Compass Housing Services.
The government is yet to detail its plans for the 151 dwellings it owns in Windale set to be rezoned for medium-density housing. Residents are concerned they will be displaced or put into shoe-box apartments if the properties are redeveloped, which they say will dramatically change their way of life.
"I've given my kids plenty of options to move, but we don't want to move," Windale resident Belinda Schueppenhauer said. "We love our community the way it is."
Ray Hinton believes higher density housing will bring more anti-social issues. He said most houses set to be rezoned had decent-sized yards, which offered space for children to play, to house animals and respectable distance between residents.
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