Connectivity and Infrastructure Delivery Key to Unlocking Greenfields

While rezoning may be a slow burn for greenfield developers, the real hurdle is connecting infrastructure to greenfield sites, according to industry leaders. 

In February this year the Federal Government introduced changes to the Telecommunications in New Developments (TIND) policy, which puts the onus on developers to ensure mobile phone towers are treated as core infrastructure in the same way utilities are.  

Developers of projects greater than 50 lots will need to ensure allowance is made to provide coverage to their developments.  

Speaking at The Urban Developer’s property leaders lunch recently, in partnership with Waveconn, AV Jennings Queensland senior development manager Russell Dunster said they were working to identify suitable mobile sites early in the masterplanning of broadacre developments.

The consensus among attendees was that the delivery of utilities and infrastructure needed to be overhauled to expedite planning and completion of lots.

But Frasers Property general manager for residential in Queensland Scott Ullman said it would take a paradigm shift in thinking for many developers to become proactive in delivering telecommunications provisions. 

“It is funny to think about how things have changed—when I first started developing down at Brookhaven … at the time mobile coverage was rubbish around there,” Ullman said.

“Our mindset was someone else is on that, and this is the challenge. It’s going to take a bit to peel that back to where people value the mobile phone coverage enough that they’re happy to have a tower in their backyard.”

Frasers is now working with Waveconn, a Mobile Network Infrastructure Provider (MNIP) to provide mobile tower infrastructure for its greenfield development, Five Farms, in Victoria’s growth corridor. 

Trask Land director David Trask said a more streamlined approach to planning and infrastructure was needed to help him deliver his 12,000-lot pipeline.

“When I first started it used to be a handshake with a farmer and you could have marketing and sales ready to go within 12 to 18 months, now it’s a five-year process,” Trask said. 

▲ Peet Limited’s Jonathon Lawson pictured with David Trask of Trask Land.

Waveconn has mapped mobile coverage deficiencies across Australia and is working directly with developers to address the problem. 

Mobile phone coverage is now an essential part of modern living, according to Waveconn head of strategic partnerships Erin Buyers.  

“Some early developments that were built without any mobile coverage have faced some difficulties. It creates real challenges for residents and their ability to work from home,” Buyers said.

“We really need to be working with developers very early on to plan with you and work with you to find the most harmonious position in your developments … and you’re able to say to potential purchasers that you will have mobile coverage across the development, from the day you move in. It’s a real differentiator.”

This was echoed by Waveconn executive director Paul Beale who said he knew of many masterplanned communities that had suffered from the assumption that this critical infrastructure would be delivered by the various carriers.

▲ Waveconn head of strategic partnerships Erin Buyers.

With the rollout of 5G technologies and the changing landscape in the mobile infrastructure business, the approach of ‘it’s somebody else’s problem’ with respect to providing mobile coverage was a broken model, Beale said.  

“We can identify where there might be coverage deficiencies… which is hugely valuable in assisting developers to meet the expectations of the TIND policy,” Beale said. 

“Sustainable, connected and safe communities we believe can only really be delivered with mobile connectivity as part of the masterplan.”

With a seriously constrained housing supply and big housing targets, more needs to be done to smooth the way for these communities to proceed.