What’s happening?
The Queensland Government has committed funding through the Residential Activation Fund for a new water treatment plant at Westbrook.
The Southern Water Treatment Plant will expand supply capacity and strengthen the city’s water network as Toowoomba continues to grow.
It will also provide the trunk infrastructure needed for major residential development across southern Toowoomba and other growth areas.
Toowoomba Regional Council will now work with the State Government on detailed planning and project delivery.
Why it matters?
New housing cannot be delivered at scale without reliable water infrastructure to support homes, businesses and community facilities.
The Westbrook project will allow the council to plan ahead while improving water security and flexibility across the wider network.
It also gives developers greater confidence that future residential areas can be serviced as demand for housing increases.
The funding means essential infrastructure can be built before existing systems face further pressure from population growth.
Local Impact
The investment will support new neighbourhoods across the Toowoomba Region and help bring more residential land into development.
Southern Toowoomba is expected to benefit directly, with the plant creating capacity for larger housing projects in future growth areas.
The project will also strengthen water services for existing residents and reduce pressure on the current treatment system.
Council expects the investment to support employment, business activity and continued regional economic growth.
By the numbers
- The Queensland Government has committed $145 million, making it the largest single council project grant received for the community.
- The Southern Water Treatment Plant could support about 33,000 dwellings across the region over the long term.
- Toowoomba’s existing Mt Kynoch water treatment plant was built in 1975 and has served the city for more than 50 years.
Zoom In
Toowoomba Region Mayor Geoff McDonald said the funding marked an important moment for council and the wider community.
“Today’s announcement sets a new benchmark. This investment by the Crisafulli Queensland Government is the largest single council project grant that Toowoomba Regional Council has received on behalf of our community,” Mayor McDonald said.
“This announcement today is more than unlocking the potential of 33,000 new homes. This announcement provides credibility to the council and community advocacy process. This announcement provides unheralded positivity for the Toowoomba Region.
“This funding is about much more than water infrastructure. It is about creating the foundations for new communities, new neighbourhoods, new jobs and new opportunities for generations of Queenslanders.
“The Toowoomba Region is one of Queensland’s great regional success stories. People are choosing to live here, businesses are choosing to invest here, and families are choosing to build their futures here.
“To support that growth, we need to invest in the infrastructure that makes future communities possible.
“The Southern Water Treatment Plant is exactly that type of region-shaping infrastructure. It will unlock the capacity needed to support up to 33,000 future homes across our Region and help ensure Toowoomba remains one of Queensland’s most liveable and prosperous regional centres.”
Mayor McDonald said the investment also showed the region was prepared to help address Queensland’s housing supply pressures.
“At a time when housing supply is a major challenge across Queensland, this investment demonstrates that the Toowoomba Region is ready to be part of the solution,” he said. “We are not simply planning for the next few years. We are planning for the next generation.
“This project sends a strong message that our Region is confident, growing and ready for the future.”
Zoom Out
Deputy Mayor Rebecca Vonhoff said water infrastructure must be in place before new communities can be built and occupied.
“Before you can build homes, you need the infrastructure that supports them,” Cr Vonhoff said.
“While future residents will see new homes, new neighbourhoods and new communities, it is investments like this happening behind the scenes that make that growth possible. The Southern Water Treatment Plant will provide the backbone infrastructure needed to support major residential development across the Region, including new growth opportunities in southern Toowoomba and beyond. Our current water treatment plant at Mt Kynoch was built in 1975. I can’t overstate how critical today’s announcement of this water infrastructure at Westbrook is for us.”
Cr Vonhoff said the project would allow council to keep infrastructure aligned with growth instead of responding after capacity becomes strained.
“Our responsibility is to ensure infrastructure keeps pace with growth and that we are planning ahead rather than reacting after the fact,” she said. “This investment will help unlock housing at greater scale and pace, provide greater water security and support the continued growth of communities right across the Toowoomba Region.
“It is a project that will benefit current residents, future residents and the broader Queensland economy.”
What To Look For Next?
Council and the Queensland Government will move into detailed planning before construction and delivery arrangements are confirmed.
As planning progresses, further details may be released on project timing, construction stages and the housing areas it will serve.
