Terrace houses in Woollahra, Sydney, in January.
Photographer: Brendon Thorne/BloombergReal Estate
A Wealthy Sydney Suburb Braces for a Fight Over 10,000 New Homes
As Australia struggles with soaring house prices and tight supply, one of its most exclusive neighborhoods becomes the latest battleground over density.
In the leafy streets of Woollahra, an affluent Sydney enclave home to some of Australia’s priciest real estate, locals haven’t been this riled since 1976.
Half a century after residents helped kill off a train station they feared would shatter the suburb’s calm, workers returned to the abandoned site last month to resurrect the plan. This time, it’s linked to the construction of 10,000 new homes in and around Woollahra as the state government scrambles to boost supply in one of the world’s least-dense and most expensive housing markets.