Local councils across Sydney will be required to maintain 30 years of future housing capacity in their local planning schemes under a new 20-year strategic framework unveiled by the Minns government.
The Sydney Plan, released alongside the state’s first State Land Use Plan, sets out a long-term roadmap to handle population growth as the city expands from 5.3 million residents today to 6.6 million by 2046.
To accommodate an additional 1.3 million people, state projections indicate Sydney will require at least 800,000 new homes and 950,000 more jobs over the next two decades.
The blueprint adopts a geographic strategy for future growth: directing increased housing supply into well-serviced eastern and central suburbs close to existing transport networks, while driving industrial and commercial development across Western Sydney.
Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Paul Scully said the plan aligns development with local community strengths.
“It recognises that different parts of Sydney have different strengths, supporting more housing in well-serviced areas while driving the next wave of economic growth in Western Sydney,” Mr Scully said.
Under the framework, local government areas must embed 30 years of feasible housing capacity directly into their Local Environmental Plans (LEPs). The state government will also negotiate updated five-year housing targets with councils following the conclusion of the National Housing Accord in 2029.
Mr Scully said locking in long-term capacity was essential to prevent recurring supply crises.
“It also locks in a requirement for an ongoing pipeline of feasible housing supply, so we do not find ourselves back in the position we are in today,” Mr Scully said. “This is about planning ahead, not catching up, so Sydney has the homes it needs for the next 30 years and beyond.”
For the first time, employment targets will also be allocated by local government area to ensure councils facilitate economic space alongside residential density. Commercial expansion across Western Sydney will be anchored by Western Sydney International Airport, the Aerotropolis, and dedicated logistics precincts.
To protect critical industrial corridors, the government released a complementary Statewide Policy for Industrial Lands. The initiative safeguards key manufacturing, warehousing, and transport sectors, which generate more than $83 billion annually in Western Sydney alone.
The final strategy incorporates feedback from more than 2,000 submissions lodged following the public exhibition of the draft plan in late 2025.
“We’ve listened to councils, industry and the community, and the final plan is stronger because of that feedback,” Mr Scully said.
Criticising historical planning approaches, Mr Scully said previous growth had occurred without adequate infrastructure coordination.
“For too long, Sydney’s growth was left to chance, with housing, jobs and infrastructure planned in silos and communities left to pick up the pieces. The new Sydney Plan changes that,” he said.
“This Sydney Plan provides a clear roadmap for where homes, jobs and infrastructure should go over the next 20 years, so communities have the services and opportunities they need as they grow.”
Alongside the metropolitan framework, the new State Land Use Plan establishes a three-tier system to align state, regional, and local planning across NSW.
“For the first time, we’re also introducing a State Land Use Plan that creates a simpler, more consistent strategic planning framework to guide decisions at the state, regional, and local level,” Mr Scully said.
The package also identifies priority “Blue-Green Grid” corridors to improve public access to parks and waterways, with the first three scheduled for delivery over the next three years.
Government figures show NSW currently leads the country in home building, with more than 80,000 homes presently under construction.