Arana and Jerry have moved into one of the 10 new homes built for the town of Ali Curung in the Barkly region. Photo: Facebook/Selena Uibo.
Residents of remote communities near the Queensland border of the Northern Territory have been able to enjoy new homes thanks to a building boom in the Barkly region.
As part of the Territory Government’s remote housing program, 103 of the 155 homes planned for the region have now been completed, with another 27 still under construction.
Since the NT Labor Government’s election in 2016, it has built and upgraded 1300 homes under ongoing programs before launching its own remote housing program with Federal Government funding in 2018.
In total, 3750 homes in remote communities have been built and upgraded, including works currently underway.
The five-year National Partnership for Remote Housing Northern Territory, which ended in July 2023 and is in the process of renewal, delivered $550 million in funding to improve housing outcomes for Aboriginal Territorians in remote communities and was matched by a $1.1 million investment by the NT Government.
Commonwealth support has been extended for a year as the Territory Government implements its biggest-ever investment into remote housing.
Minister for Remote Housing and Homelands Selena Uibo said she has heard first-hand accounts of families who have struggled for many years in overcrowded conditions and seen tears of joy and relief as they receive the keys to their new homes.
“I am incredibly proud of our housing achievements in the Barkly, which is the Territory’s second biggest electorate that covers close to 443,000 square kilometres,” she said.
Ms Uibo said the region’s geographic expanse presents many challenges, making it a particularly significant achievement that the government has managed to build and upgrade hundreds of homes.
“It truly is an honour to be leading our remote housing program because I know that decent homes are not only making lives easier and better for Territorians, but are improving long-term health, education, employment and social outcomes right across the Territory.”
In Alpurrurulam, 21 families have recently moved into new homes and three more five-bedroom homes will be ready in the next couple of weeks.
The modular homes are built by Territory company Demountable Sales and Hire and have been installed by Wilga Indigenous Corporation, which has provided employment opportunities to Alpurrurulam locals.
In Elliott, eight homes are under construction, and 10 homes have been built at Ali Curung.
At Ampilatwatja on the Sandover Highway, a contract has been awarded for eight new homes with construction works expected to commence in January 2024, while procurement is underway for eight homes in the Davenport Ranges community of Canteen Creek.
Five homes have also been built in Pmara Jutunta, with another three under construction, and five new homes are set to add to the pool of 34 homes in Borroloola.
Homes have already been completed in Nturiya, Tara and Wilora.
Additionally, 126 homes in the region will be extended and improved as part of the Room to Breathe program, more than half of which are already completed.
This news comes soon after the High Court handed down a legal win for residents of Santa Teresa, a town southeast of Alice Springs, who were found to have been living in substandard housing.
In 2016, a group of residents launched a class action lawsuit against the NT government for compensation over the poor-quality housing they were required to live in.
The court’s majority ruling called on the government as landlord to pay for the “distress and disappointment” that residents endured. It came down to the government’s breach of the Residential Tenancies Act by not providing one individual with a back door for more than five years.
