Sharing the responsibility: the role of developer contributions in the provision of lower income housing in California and its implications for Victoria
This thesis investigates the relevance and transferability of developer contributed affordable housing in the USA as an alternative method of funding and delivering affordable housing in Australia. Local Government, the vehicle for the delivery, is explored because of its central role in co-ordinating developer contributed affordable housing in the USA; and because its role in both counties as both the planning authority and a potential provider or facilitator of community housing. Additionally, the nature and role of community based housing providers in the USA is considered important in maintaining the purpose of developer contributed affordable housing and also expanding the size of the community housing sector. The thesis investigated developer contribution policies and programs in four Californian municipalities: San Francisco, Santa Monica, Los Angeles and San Diego. This State and these cities have established some of the most well developed programs of this type in the USA. The investigation included controls and incentives, both mutually reinforcing, used in these Californian programs as well as operational program factors which led to their success. These were contrasted with Australian conditions to determine the relevance and transferability of the US experience. A central conclusion was that the US developer contribution programs had limited relevance and transferability to Australia for a number of reasons. These reasons include the divergent roles, track records and legal powers of local government in the USA and Australia in planning and housing provision or facilitation; contrasting legislative frameworks and nature of housing developers between the two countries; and the lack of an imperative in Australia to develop alternatives to centrally provided public housing systems which is in contrast to the USA. Consequently, the value of the US experience was that their particularly successful and problematic aspects of developer contributed housing programs and community housing arrangements would develop a useful context for an Australian model.
History
Thesis type
Thesis (Masters by research)
Thesis note
Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, Swinburne University of Technology, 1999.