The Property Council of Australia welcomed the NSW Government’s announcement of a roadmap for lifting restrictions for the fully vaccinated.
The announcement:
NSW Property Council Executive Director Luke Achterstraat said with vaccination rates encouragingly increasing today’s announcement was due.
“The setting of clearer timelines and targets for greater freedoms including when businesses will reopen is welcomed,” Mr Achterstraat said.
“However, further details will need to be determined including policy settings that prioritise economic recovery.
“We look forward to working with Government on advancing plans for the reactivation of our CBD and the re-opening of construction worksites. CBDs cannot be reactivated until workers are going back to offices to breathe life into our cities.”
Mr Achterstraat said collaborative effort was needed.
“With Sydney’s most recent office occupancy data detailing just 4 percent – the lowest of all time, we need a concerted effort from business, people and government to come together to ensure our public spaces and central districts can bounce back,” Mr Achterstraat said.
“Investment in attracting people back to the city and to public spaces is critical to ensuring Sydney and our other CBDs, the economic powerhouses of the state, are able to once again thrive.”
Mr Achterstraat said confidence building exercises would be important steps to ensure that our workforces can return in full swing.
“Activating open-air spaces across our cities is a way forward to bring back that confidence and to encourage the foot traffic back into those hard hit areas and providing entertainment in the spring air.
“Similarly, the construction industry needs to be given a clear plan for a full reopening after the industry has blazed a trail for sector-based vaccine uptake. With worksite capacity capped at 50 per cent the ability for NSW to create jobs and homes currently has a handbrake applied to it.
“With much of the economic recovery from last year’s lockdown being underwritten by the property industry, it is critical that the industry is provided the right policy setting to underwrite the recovery as part of the roadmap announced today.”
Source: Property Council of Australia
