The NSW State government is directing the rezoning of public facilities
across NSW (including schools, nurseries, churches, police stations,
hospitals, TAFE and university campuses) away from special use zonings that
protect them from sale and re-development, to residential and commercial
zonings. This will facilitate their sale, according to NSW Greens MP David
Shoebridge.

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/zoning-changes-a-developer-bonanza-20110130-1a9pl.html

"This is a State wide gift to developers by the NSW Government," Mr
Shoebridge said.

"Local councils have long used special use zonings to protect key public
infrastructure like schools from inappropriate development. Now due to a
short-sighted government beholden to developers this protection will soon be
lost.

"The Greens are calling for a state wide boycott by local councils of the
new LEP to stop the Department of Planning from priming NSW's key
infrastructure for sale.

"We must protect key infrastructure in our communities from short term
profiteering by property developers and cash-hungry State governments.

"Every public school and public facility must be protected by planning laws
in NSW.  With the pressure on land across the state, if we don't protect our
schools and other key infrastructure NSW faces long term structural failure.

"The State government has said these changes are to give land owners
'greater flexibility' for 'adaptive management' of their land.  Translated
this means the government wants to be able to sell schools, TAFE campuses,
hospitals and the like, without going through public scrutiny or
consultation.

"I'm yet to meet a single resident who wants this or any future State
government to be able to be more 'flexible' with their local school or
hospital.

"By forcing Councils to rezone their schools, hospitals and town halls the
State government is handing an incoming Coalition Government the capacity
for a state-wide sell-off of public land.

"In places like Marrickville the state government has instructed literally
every public school must be rezoned, leaving only Catholic schools protected
by special use zoning.  This is a remarkably short sighted approach for any
government to take.

"The uplift in land values from the rezoning in some of these sites is
enormous.  On estimates given to the Greens a site like Lane Cove West
public school would be worth more than $50 million if sol. Sites closer to
the CBD such as the College of Fine Arts would yield significantly more.

"Labor and the Coalition need to learn that NSW is not for sale," Mr
Shoebridge said.