Waterloo has been at the centre of changing visions of the role of government in housing, experiencing waves of intervention – from ‘slum clearance’ projects in the 1950s that compulsorily acquired private land to build new public housing, through the sell-off of public housing in the conservation area to fund the public housing system, to today's Waterloo estate redevelopment that builds private housing on previously public land to pay for renewed social and affordable housing no longer run by government.
Waterloo remains home to Sydney’s largest public housing estate. It has a particular significance for the area’s traditional Gadigal owners as well as the wider urban First Nations communities who constitute a significant part of its residents. The future of public housing and public urbanism may be determined by actions taken in Waterloo.
Festival of Urbanism participants have an opportunity to visit the Waterloo public housing community and learn about its past and possible futures with members of the community based ‘REDWatch’ advocacy group.
Numbers are strictly limited, so book early to avoid disappointment.
Meeting instructions provided on registration
Please note, this walking tour will involve some uneven surfaces and stairs. Please wear comfortable shoes, bring water and sun protection. The tour will proceed under most weather conditions.
tour lead
Geoff Turnbull, REDWatch spokesperson
Geoff Turnbull has been a spokesperson for REDWatch since it was set up in 2004 to monitor government plans to reform human services and leverage the redevelopment of the Redfern, Eveleigh, Darlington and Waterloo (REDW) area. During the RWA times Geoff was a community member on the Redfern Waterloo Built Environment Ministerial Advisory Committee and its Heritage Taskforce. He currently is a Co-Chair of the Waterloo Human services Collaborative’s Service Integration and Systems Coordination Group tasked with progressing a part of the Waterloo Action Plan to provide better supports for public housing tenants. He is also a member of the NGO umbrella organisation Redfern Waterloo Groundswell, the Waterloo Redevelopment Group and sits as a community member on the Executive Steering Group of the SLHD / UNSW Health Equity Research and Development Unit (HERDU).