Almost two years after floods devastated towns in northern NSW, a local university has offered a parcel of land in a bid to tackle the housing crisis and support affected residents.
Five people were killed and thousands of homes were damaged or destroyed in February 2022 when heavy rain raised the Wilsons River to a record high of 14.4m.
In parts of Lismore, floodwaters more than 10m deep inundated homes to the ceiling and reached the upper storeys of businesses in the town centre.
Regional communities in the Northern Rivers have been slow to rebuild, with some residents still living in caravans, tents or temporary pod villages.
Others have returned to partially repaired homes as they are unable to afford to live anywhere else.
State government agency Landcom will partner with Lismore's Southern Cross University and the NSW Reconstruction Authority to unlock 72ha of university land to be used for housing.
It will be the first major project delivered under the government's $100 million Resilient Lands Program, set up to provide housing in the Northern Rivers.
Under the deal, more than 400 houses will be built on the land located in East Lismore, with 20 per cent to be set aside for affordable housing.
Developments will be a mix of low- and medium-density housing as well as serviced lots and low-rise multi-dwellings.
Some lots will also be used to relocate existing houses from flood-affected areas.
Landcom will invest $60 million in the site to provide infrastructure such as new roads, power, water and sewerage connections.
The NSW Reconstruction Authority will also tip in $15 million to give residents who are part of the program priority access to buy land before it is made available to the broader market.
Premier Chris Minns said the Northern Rivers had waited a long time to access safer land and housing options.
"There is a lot more that we need to do but this is an important step in the community's recovery process," he said.
Design and planning work to confirm how residents will be able to secure land under the project will now get under way.
Planning Minister Paul Scully said the development would be the first in a number of projects to help people move off the floodplain and out of harm's way.
"The Northern Rivers had been experiencing housing pressures for some time before the floods and that's why we have made getting housing supply up and running a priority," he said.
"Today's announcement is the result of a mammoth amount of work and the long-term impact it will have on Lismore should not be underestimated."
