The state government has lodged a development application for the construction of 49 new townhouses and apartments on an 8,500 square metre State-owned site located adjacent to the new Nicholson Road Train Station in Canning Vale.
Known as the METRONET precinct housing project, the development at Tulloch Way is set to deliver a mix of one, two, and three-bedroom social and affordable homes.
This includes 18 townhouses and 31 apartments, all built to Livable Housing Australia’s Silver Standard, near a key METRONET precinct.
State Housing Minister John Carey believes the project will enhance social and affordable housing options in the area and is supported by a $3.2 billion investment in housing and homelessness measures that aims to deliver around 5,000 social homes across WA.
“The Tulloch Way project is a strategically located infill development through medium-density housing in central locations, giving people on lower incomes ready access to jobs, services, transport and amenity,” Minister Carey said.
“We are utilising key METRONET precincts and unlocking lazy government land through the Housing Diversity Pipeline to maximise the potential of the land for social and affordable housing – including developments in Pier Street and Smith Street.”
According to the state government, more than 2,450 social homes have been added across Western Australia since the investment began, with more than 1,000 additional social homes currently under contract or in construction.
However, Deputy WA Liberal Leader and Shadow Minister for Housing, Steve Martin MLC, has criticised the government’s approach to addressing the state housing crisis, claiming the project announcements are redundant if there aren’t enough tradespeople to construct the houses.
“We have seen a state government overheat the construction market with its own reckless spending on METRONET; it has literally sucked all the capacity out of the residential building sector in recent years,” Mr Martin said.
“For six or seven years, they prioritised a train line and not housing. And now we see a state government scrambling to try and make up that gap in the shadows of the 2025 election.”
Mr Martin said he believes irresponsible migration has contributed to the housing crisis, and it can’t be resolved quickly.
“With a lack of dwellings and a skill trades shortage, it’s a nasty set of circumstances that the housing market finds itself in, and of course, the lack of homes has pushed up the private rental market as well,” he said.
“The mining sector also tells us they are still thousands of people short, so there’s a lot of competition for those skilled tradespeople in Western Australia.”
Despite the criticism, Southern River MLA Terry Healy is pleased to see the project announced and said he believes it will greatly benefit the area.
“This is such a great outcome for Canning Vale and surrounding communities,” Mr Healy said.
“These modern social and affordable houses will provide new homes to people in our local community and are located perfectly to take advantage of the upcoming nearby METRONET developments.”
