As Alex Wendler came on board as CEO of Landcom four and a half years ago, it was a time of change.
The New South Wales government owned land agency, launched 50 years ago, was evolving from a “traditional land developer” into an “integrated land and property developer”.
It means that the agency could broaden its scope from “city shaping and city changing master planned communities” to a broader portfolio.
Among these are terraces and manor houses that use modern methods of construction (MMC), build-to-rent and affordable homes and large housing projects at Bomaderry on the south coast as well as at Lismore on the state’s north coast that will support a community devastated by the massive floods in 2022.
All of this is targeted in a “relatively short time frame” thanks to an $800 million staged equity investment from the state government, Wendler tells us in this wide ranging conversation.
It was good news to hear that Landcom was again in the business of demonstrating leadership. When we first engaged with the agency, back in the early days of The Fifth Estate, it was keen to demonstrate how sustainability was achievable – and not “weird” – in both urban planning and housing.
A project at The Ponds in Sydney’s north west was particularly important; we felt for its use of eco-friendly materials sourced from ordinary building suppliers, and a design that showed a house could look “normal” but still tick off some good sustainability outcomes. (Times were different then!)
In recent days the state government announced Landcom’s first batch of terrace houses at Schofields in Sydney’s north west, built as part of a program to support the emerging MMC industry had managed to shave construction times by 12-14 months.
Wendler, in this interview, takes us through the current crop of work and plans for how his team is “making sure we are ready for the challenges that we are facing and being more ambitious, being more impactful and as well very much driving or increasing our scope.”
Subscribe to The Fifth Estate newsletter so you don’t miss any of our industry news, as it comes to hand.
Become a member if you want to support our work.
