Tram-cars, tents, igloos and garages: An institutional-theoretical lens on temporary dwellings in Australia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7480/iphs.2016.2.1235Abstract
Following World War II, Australia was confronted by a severe shortage of dwellings. One relief valve for some cities was a stock of un-serviced building lots situated on the suburban fringe. In Sydney, Australia’s largest city, thousands of aspiring home-owners purchased such land but, affected by shortages of money and materials, were only able to construct a temporary dwelling. These homes ranged from shacks and garages to tram-cars, Nissen-huts and tents.The post-war phenomenon of such housing in Australia has been neglected both empirically and theoretically. This paper draws upon Sorensen’s suggestion of Historical Institutionalism in an attempt to pursue the theoretical challenge. The proposition explored is that the existence of temporary dwellings in Sydney was evidence of a critical juncture in the institutionalised regulation of housing, creating opportunities for policy change. Firstly, local authorities were forced to permit the occupation of dwellings which did not comply with existing ordinances, and secondly, they adapted their regulations to give permanent approval to sub-standard accommodation.
The paper concludes by suggesting that policy changes reverted to the institutionalised model for two reasons: path dependency and positive feedback mechanisms privileged those committed to an unchanged institution, while the permanent housing converged with adapted regulations.
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