STUCCO Housing Co-operative is the first and only student housing co-operative in Australia, although other types of housing co-operatives are relatively common there. STUCCO reflects the left-wing principles of Stucco's founders.
History[]
Originally an abandoned and squatted warehouse, a consortium of interested parties persuaded the University of Sydney and the New South Wales Office of Community Housing (OCH) to purchase the property and allow its redevelopment into housing as it is today. This is a completely unique arrangement. In return, STUCCO must house only students of the University of Sydney, and is located at 197 Wilson St, Newtown, New South Wales. Its name is a contraction of "Student Co-operative" – there is no stucco in the building.
While, for example in the United States, housing co-operatives are a common type of student housing, in its context, STUCCO represents a radical experiment. It is indeed much more radical than most American student housing co-ops, in that no functions of the co-operative management are outsourced, all administration and decisions being made on a consensus basis by residents. This reflects two-thirds of those students must be within the income threshold to qualify for community housing. Stucco opened its doors in 1991.