By Mark Hodges MP
The Minns Labor Government has now finalised its rezoning of the Cherrybrook Metro Precinct, paving the way for up to 10,000 new homes and buildings of up to 27 storeys.
From the outset, when this proposal came to light last year, I strongly opposed it, and I maintain my opposition to the rezoning in its current form.
This is not an argument against housing or sensible growth. The Hills has accommodated significant growth for decades. But growth must be properly planned and supported by the infrastructure needed to maintain our community’s quality of life.
What is particularly concerning is how dramatically the plans have changed.
In 2022, following years of planning work, the former Liberal-Nationals Government released a strategy for approximately 3,200 new homes around Cherrybrook Metro Station. After Labor was elected, that strategy was put on hold.
The Government has now approved a plan allowing for more than three times that number — up to 10,000 dwellings.
When I spoke about this proposal in Parliament last year, I asked a simple question: what changed?
What new infrastructure planning justified increasing the scale of development from 3,200 homes to 10,000?
Unfortunately, the final rezoning still leaves many of the most important questions unanswered.
There remains no certainty around critical upgrades to Castle Hill Road and New Line Road, despite both already experiencing significant congestion during peak periods.
There is still no identified site for a future primary school, despite the Government acknowledging that additional school infrastructure will ultimately be required.
There is also no clear strategy explaining how Metro capacity will accommodate the additional population, or how sufficient sporting fields, parks and community facilities will be delivered.
During the consultation process, residents made their concerns abundantly clear. Yet rather than substantially reducing the scale and intensity of the proposal, the Government has proceeded with a rezoning that will permit dramatically increased density and buildings reaching up to 27 storeys.
I welcome sensible development around public transport. But simply drawing a circle around a Metro station and maximising apartment numbers within it is not genuine strategic planning.
Cherrybrook and West Pennant Hills are established communities with unique environmental characteristics, challenging topography and already strained infrastructure. A genuine transit-oriented community requires more than apartments near a railway station. It requires schools, roads, parks, services and transport capacity to support the people who will live there.
My concern is that the Government has approved the housing first and left the infrastructure questions for later.
We have seen what happens when growth gets ahead of infrastructure elsewhere in The Hills. We cannot continue repeating the same mistakes.
If the NSW Government is willing to approve up to 10,000 new homes in Cherrybrook, it should also be willing to guarantee the roads, schools, public transport and community infrastructure needed to support them.
