The long-awaited transformation of the Bombo Quarry into a housing area is a step closer after the Independent Planning Commission has recommended that proposed rehabilitation works be declared a State Significant Development.

For decades, the land has been viewed as a potential solution to Kiama's lack of housing and the IPC's decision has been welcomed by Mayor Cameron McDonald.

“It is a really great announcement for the community of Kiama,” he told The Bugle.

“It’s the first necessary step in a long process. Council certainly doesn’t have the ready set of consultants that would be required to look at the remediation of the site such as geotechs, hydraulic engineers and other specialist analysts.

“What it means for the ratepayer is the State Government steps in and does all that work underneath the State Significant Development umbrella, the ratepayers get the benefit of that work to progress it and to stay in control of the site.

“It is excellent from a Housing Strategy point of view. This is a significant signal from the State Government that it’s a much shorter timeframe than what the community is expecting.”

It is a common refrain around the Kiama LGA that the Bombo Quarry redevelopment has been “10 years away” for several decades but it now looks like it will happen with a new estate in place sometime within the 2030s.

“The State Government, with the housing crisis, is keen to get things moving, Cr McDonald added.

“We haven’t lost sight of the fact that with this Bombo Quarry site there’s all this significant infrastructure that will be required to be addressed alongside it.”

That includes the road network, Sydney Water’s needs, the Bombo sewage treatment facility as well as school, pre-school, shopping, and sporting and community group facilities.

Later this year or in early 2026, Kiama Council will begin to come up with a plan, in consultation with the State Government, about its long-term vision for the precinct and how that can be achieved.

There could be as many as 2000 houses in the redeveloped quarry site but that could fluctuate depending on the density put in place and other amenities that are built for the area.

Cr McDonald said Council’s housing goal of 900 new homes by the end of this decade would be more than accommodated by in-fill development as well as projects already underway in Shoalhaven Street, the Sunnymeade site in Gerringong, South Kiama and Golden Valley in Jamberoo.

The goal of 3400 new dwellings by 2040 isn’t a mandated number by the NSW Government but Council is planning for those numbers to come to fruition.

IPC’s decision to recognise the state importance of the Bombo Quarry rehabilitation project progressed after a Ministerial call-in request from the NSW Transport Asset Manager and Boral, supported by Urbis.

While the project does not meet the statutory thresholds in the State Environmental Planning Policy (Planning Systems) 2021, the Commission found the development warranted consideration as a State Significant Development due to its broader significance.

“Bombo Quarry has played a significant role in the state’s infrastructure and construction story for decades," Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Paul Scully said.

"The Independent Planning Commission’s advice makes clear that its rehabilitation is a matter of state importance.”

Newly elected Kiama MP Katelin McInerney said this was an important milestone for the local community.

“The rehabilitation of Bombo Quarry has been talked about for many years, and it’s clear the scale and complexity of the project means it should be treated as state significant," he said.

"I welcome the Commission’s recommendation and the attention it brings to getting the best possible outcome for the people of Kiama.”