NSW GOVERNMENT TIGHTENS THE CAP ON AIRBNB AND SHORTTERM RENTAL ACCOMMODATION IN BYRON BAY

By Sarah Waters

September 26 next year.

‘In moment,” he said.

“It’s a wonderful thing to be able to represent the Clarence Valley.”

He said he had experienced a warm welcome from the community since coming to the region and being elected to council at the December 2021 poll.

The elevation from fledgling councillor to fledgling mayor in less than two years has not daunted Cr Johnstone, but he admits his learning curve has been steep.

He said he learned a lot from working alongside the previous mayor, Cr Ian Tiley, who made a last-minute decision to withdraw from last week’s ballot.

“It’s been a great privilege to learn alongside Ian,” he said. “There are also lots of people I can ask questions of.

“And I have to say Laura Black (council general manager) has been fantastic as well.”

Cr Johnstone said he had also received several texts from other mayors offering him support and advice should he need it.

“Although it’s a new role, I know there are people I can ask and I’m not afraid of asking questions,” he said.

“I’m also someone whose not afraid to learn and learn fast and do lots of reading.”

Mayor Johnstone brings a variety of life skills to the position.

He has been a maths teacher for 28 years, including nine at South Grafton High School with some casual teaching at Maclean High School and St Andrews.

His three adult children live in Brisbane and his wife, Julie, is a doctor in Grafton.

Cr Johnstone has also served in the Royal Air Force and spent a year as a factory worker.

Other roles include volunteer firefighter with Grafton City RFB, and Secretary of the Grafton Supa Oldie Soccer Club.

The new mayor does not have a lot of time to make his mark as he will be in charge for just 10 council meetings before the September 2024 local government election.

“It might not be 10,” he said. “I think the last one we will be in caretaker mode.”

Cr Tiley gave was a surprise withdrawal from race, leaving just three candidates for the mayoral race, Cr Johnson, Cr Steve

Pickering and Cr Debrah Novak.

He gave an ultra-short summary of his reasons for opting out, after initially saying he would run.

“I didn’t have the numbers,” was his only comment.

Councillors voted to accept a show of hands to decide the ballot and order of voting was decided by drawing names from a box.

Candidates were given five minutes to make an address to council.

The first round of voting was, in draw order: Cr Novak 1, Cr Pickering 3, Cr Johnstone 5.

Cr Novak was eliminated and in the second ballot, Cr Johnstone 5 (Crs Johnstone, Clancy, Tiley, Day, Smith) polled ahead of Cr Pickering 4 (Crs Pickering, Toms, Waites, Novak) and was declared mayor.

A similar process followed to elect a deputy mayor with Crs Jeff Smith and Karen Toms the only nominations.

Cr Smith with five votes (Crs Smith, Johnstone, Clancy, Tiley, Day) defeated Cr Toms 4 (Crs Pickering, Toms, Waites, Novak).

It’s only one part of the puzzle in solving Byron Bay’s complex housing crisis, but Airbnbs and other short-term holiday accommodation in most parts of the Shire can only be rented 60 days a year. The NSW Government made the major announcement last week.

It came in response to the Independent Planning Commission’s (IPC) recommendation to cap un-hosted short term rental accommodation from 180 days to 60 days a year, in a bid to return more long-term rentals to the market.

Byron Shire Council supported the 60-day cap and has been waiting, since April, for NSW Planning Minister Paul Scully to accept or reject the IPC recommendation.

The sweeping change will not affect hosted short-term rentals (where the host lives on the property during the stay) which can still be rented out 365 days a year.

Precincts in Byron Bay and Brunswick Heads, identified by council as having ‘high tourism appeal’ will be able to operate without a cap - allowing homes to be used as short-term rentals all year.

There will be a 12-month transition period for the community and industry to prepare before the new rules take effect on

Planning minister Paul Scully said the undersupply of affordable housing in the Byron Shire largely affected key workers and permanent residents.

“These changes to short term rental accommodation only addresses part of Byron’s housing supply and affordability issues,” Mr Scully said.

“It was important for me to clearly understand council’s plans to deliver more housing through other mechanisms, before making a decision on the proposal.

“After reviewing council’s housing response … I have decided to endorse the new cap across parts of the Byron Shire, as recommended by the IPC,” he said.

The Department of Planning and Environment will continue to work with Byron Shire Council to monitor its commitment to increase housing supply.

Council needs to supply more than 4500 houses by 2041 to meet its housing targets, set by the NSW Government.

In council’s recently released Housing Options Paper it outlines plans to deliver homes, by releasing more land for development and creating new dwellings on vacant or underutilised land.

Mr Scully said he recognised short term rental accommodation was a complex matter in the Shire, given the region’s unique and exceptional circumstances as one of Australia’s most visited tourism destinations.

But it was crucial more homes were returned for permanent residency, particularly to have workers in the visitor economy.

“In the current housing crisis, it’s important every available means to boost housing stock for the community is utilised, including a shift from non-hosted short term rental accommodation (STRA) to long term rentals,” he said.

Byron Shire Mayor

Michael Lyon said he welcomed the NSW Government’s decision, which ‘broadly aligned’ with a couple of the key recommendations put forward by the IPC earlier this year.

“The planning minister has acknowledged the shortage of permanent housing supply in the Byron Shire and the impact STRA is having on people’s ability to find stable, long-term accommodation,” Mr Lyon said.

“We have always said that regulating STRA will not solve the housing crisis in our Shire, but it will increase the pool of long-term rental accommodation which is so vital for people, especially key workers and those on lower incomes,” Mayor Lyon said.

The state government became involved in council’s housing plans late last year, just before it was about to introduce a 90-day cap on short-term holiday accommodation in parts the Shire.

In December 2022, the former NSW planning minister, asked the IPC to provide advice about housing supply issues in the Byron Shire as well as council’s planning proposal.

The IPC held a public hearing and accepted community submissions.

In April this year, the IPC finalised its review and provided its advice.

The IPC’s report