Backyard bonanza: improving the quality of ‘popular’ suburban infill

Abstract

The subdivision of suburban lots to accommodate additional dwellings has been one of the most popular mechanisms for achieving urban infill in Australian cities. This is certainly the case in Perth where the subdivision of individually owned residential lots still accounts for approximately 80% of all infill dwellings created. These ‘successful’ piecemeal intensification projects are permitted through the up-zoning of existing suburban areas and encouraged through changes to strata subdivision legislation and increasing land values. They are evidence of some alignment between the supply and demand sides of the infill housing equation – a necessary, and yet somewhat elusive condition in today's economic landscape. Local governments are, however, somewhat reluctant to continue to facilitate this process of residential intensification, despite sustained pressure to increase infill dwelling numbers, citing poor outcomes in terms of the resulting qualities of the residential environment as a chief reason. How could the current residential planning and design policy (R-codes) be successfully amended to re-enable a pre-existing and demonstrably popular mechanism, which potentially aligns both demand and supply, and thereby significantly contribute to meeting infill targets in the future? The research, undertaken in partnership with the City of Fremantle, attempts to address this question.