Local community housing provider Social Futures will be one of the first organisations in Lismore and the Northern Rivers to build 3D-printed housing, if its development application (DA) with Lismore City Council is approved.

In May 2025, the NSW Government built the state's first 3D-printed social housing project when it built two brand new two-bedroom homes in only 20 weeks, half the time it would normally take.

Social Futures has three high-profile social and temporary housing projects operating in Lismore. The McKenzie Street 58-room temporary housing project that was approved by Council two weeks ago, the 18 units in Philip Street, Goonellabah, for social and affordable housing and this 3D-printed housing project, also in McKenzie Street.

The plans are for the construction of 4 boarding houses, each consisting of 3 self-contained boarding rooms, so 12 rooms in total.

The DA was first approved in March 2019, with a construction certificate issued in March 2021. In February 2022, another modified DA was approved, which included timber fencing and cladding.

The events on February 28 2022, inundated the site, and the built site was subsequently demolished.

This modified DA says, "The construction methodology has been selected due to a combination of flood resilience, cost efficiency, construction speed and building durability."

Importantly, for the DA to be approved, the plans must remain largely the same. Using 3D-printing concrete does trigger changes to the approved design, such as using concrete, the thickness of the walls, having curves instead of right-angled corners, a change to the colour palette, frosted glass in the bathroom and a change to carpet tiles.

The changes are being labelled as minor adjustments and follow Lismore City Council's Local Environmental Plan 2012 and Development Control Plan.

Each boarding house will consist of 1 upstairs bedroom, with a bathroom, a lounge room, a kitchen and a terraced area on the ground floor. There will be four accessible units with all facilities on the ground floor.

A spokesperson for Social Futures told the Lismore App, "The use of Australian 3D printing technology in construction will allow us to deliver high-quality, energy-efficient dwellings faster and more cost-effectively, helping vulnerable people in our community to access safe accommodation sooner. 

"This innovation takes an environmentally friendly approach, using a significant proportion of recycled content, and minimising construction waste. It also has the benefit of higher flood resilience to traditional construction methods.

"The cost efficiency or savings are in resources and reduction of lead time in obtaining materials, resulting in a quicker build and turnaround in delivery. This translates to more funds available to build more desperately needed housing."

The spokesperson also gave an update on the Phillip Street/McDermott Avenue project.

"The Development Application has been approved, site preparation completed, and construction commenced 10th of October. The project will deliver a mix of social and affordable housing across 18 one and two-bedroom self-contained apartments."