A COUNCIL will consider ways tiny homes can ease central Victoria's housing crisis.
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The Castlemaine-based Mount Alexander Shire is reviewing rules that limit or ban camping on private properties.
Councillors signed off on the project on Tuesday night.
It could pave the way for people to set up tiny homes on private land where they are currently restricted.
A fledgling tiny homes industry is trying to provide more opportunities to move into custom-built dwellings that can be as small as a caravan and easily moved.
The council is trying to find solutions after housing affordability was named a major issue during community consultations, Cr Matthew Driscoll said.
"We have approximately 600 households in our shire with unmet need for affordable housing," he said.
The shortages are impacting the entire community, including those who provided critically important services, young people and older residents, Cr Driscoll said.
Tiny homes would not be a panacea, he said.
"I feel like small steps such as this might just ... get people into a much better situation than they are currently in," Cr Driscoll said.
The review comes after the failed 2020 push to make provisions for tiny homes in Mount Alexander Shire's local laws.
Industry advocates criticised Local Law 13 at the time.
Cr Christine Henderson was on the council in 2020 and on Tuesday recalled her own frustrations with that review.
"I was very disappointed with Local Law 13 when it finally came to us in polished-off form," she said.
At the time, the council's ability to rethink the law was constrained by technicalities linked to a wider package of reforms, Cr Henderson said.
Cr Rosie Annear said the homeless crisis had intensified since 2020.
"Things are really bad out there. There are lots of people who just have nowhere to live," she said.
Cr Driscoll hoped the council would be able to tap into the expertise of tiny home manufacturers currently operating in the area.
He said shire officers should look to other councils for inspiration.
"There are a number of shires in Victoria that have dealt with this," Cr Driscoll said.
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Tom O'Callaghan
I grew up in Bendigo and I want to tell your stories.
I grew up in Bendigo and I want to tell your stories.
