What's different about Gungahlin
Built since the 1990s
Gungahlin has been Canberra's main greenfield growth area since the early 1990s, and it is still expanding north towards the NSW border. Most of its infrastructure networks date from that time and generally run within capacity.
Mortgages and apartments
At the 2021 Census, 66.2% of occupied homes in the Gungahlin SA3 area were separate houses and 48.5% were owned with a mortgage, against 40.2% across the ACT. In the town centre suburb of Gungahlin, 46.5% were flats or apartments and 52.5% were rented.
Young trees, hot streets
Canopy is low. In 2020 even the most established suburbs ranged from 17% in Amaroo to 23% in Palmerston, and most Gungahlin suburbs run hotter than the Canberra average in hot weather.
Silt in the stormwater
The district's stormwater network has few constraints, but the ACT Government notes localised problems from silt blockages. Parts of the town centre and Yerrabi Pond have a stormwater harvesting and reuse network.
Water pooling after rain? Start at the tie point
The ACT Government says properties in newer suburbs join its stormwater network at a stormwater tie point, and Access Canberra can tell you where yours sits. A blockage above the tie is the owner's. Below it, the ACT Government is responsible.
When the blockage seems to be beyond your boundary, the plumber digs down to the tie and contacts Access Canberra to book an inspection. If the fault turns out to be the Government's, you get back what it cost to expose the tie.
Gas in a new Gungahlin home
Since 8 December 2023 the ACT has stopped new gas network connections in residential zones, and installing a gas meter where none exists counts as a new connection. So a newly built home without a meter can't be connected to the gas network. A home that already has a meter can keep using it, and nothing yet forces a working gas appliance out.
The ACT Government says hot water heat pumps work well, even in the ACT's cold climate, and suggests choosing one suited to it. Our Canberra heat pump page covers the choices, and a gas fitter in Canberra can cap a line once the last gas appliance goes.
Sewer jobs and units
Icon Water runs the sewer. Gungahlin's trunk sewer drains to Belconnen, and the one major upgrade identified in the district is in Franklin. On your own block, keep rainwater out: Icon Water says stormwater runoff must not be connected to the household sanitary drain.
In a town centre apartment, ask the owners corporation or your property manager who arranges repairs to shared pipes before you book. For blockages, see blocked drains in Canberra; for a burst or overflow, an emergency plumber.
What we would do
Ask Access Canberra where your stormwater tie is and keep the answer with your house papers. The next time water pools in the yard, the plumber can go straight to it, and you will know quickly whether the fault is yours or the ACT Government's.