What the council is working on
Recent deliveries, what's underway now, and what's planned next — drawn from the council's own plans, budgets and project pages. We report what the council has publicly said it's doing; every item links to its source.
The council's stated direction
Lismore City Council's direction is set out in its 'Imagine Lismore' Community Strategic Plan and a Delivery Program with an annual Operational Plan and budget, shaped heavily by recovery and rebuilding after the February/March 2022 floods.
The council manages local roads, waste, water and sewer, libraries, parks and planning across a large regional LGA anchored by the Lismore CBD and Goonellabah, with villages including Nimbin, Clunes and Dunoon. Its Delivery Program is the elected council's statement of commitment for its term, delivered alongside state and federal recovery programs following the 2022 floods.
Much of Lismore's flood recovery and land planning is delivered with the NSW Reconstruction Authority and other state and federal programs (including the Resilient Homes and Resilient Lands programs), in addition to the council's own annual budget and capital works program.
Underway now
Flood buyback land precinct planning
Four precincts revealed Sep 2025; Lismore Centre plan from early 2026, all four by early 2027Following the February 2022 floods and the NSW Government's home buyback program, land across the Lismore CBD, North Lismore, South Lismore and East Lismore is being freed up (the government reports more than 650 buyback homes and about 50 hectares of land). The council is planning the future use of this flood-affected land through four precinct plans, with community engagement running through 2026.
Source: Your Say Lismore — Future use of buyback land: precinct planning
Resilient Lands Program (with NSW Reconstruction Authority)
OngoingA NSW Reconstruction Authority program to unlock flood-safe land supply across the Northern Rivers and support a more diverse range of housing, including land at Goonellabah for new homes. It works alongside the Resilient Homes (buyback and retrofit) program for flood-affected properties.
Planned / committed
Rates and financial sustainability consultation
Consulted 2025The council consulted residents in 2025 on a possible special rate variation to provide additional ongoing funding for roads and economic development. A special variation, if applied for and approved by IPART, would lift rates above the annual rate peg.