What's the State of Australia's Cities?

The report released last week, "State of Australian Cities 2012", is the third in a series of annual Australian Government publications reporting on the progress of the country's cities. Among the nuggets captured by the 2011 census: housing prices in urban environs and the numbers of families living in high-density dwellings continues to rise. Also notable: "New houses in Australia are possibly the largest in the world, eclipsing the United States."

The report also looks at governance in Australia’s major cities and, for the first time, evaluates the progress of cities in meeting the goals set forth in the country's National Urban Policy, which was released in May 2011.

"Within the document an urban design protocol for Australian cities, Creating Places for People – is a web-based tool that establishes 12 broadly agreed principles for quality urban places in the Australian context. It is intended that these principles be applied to any project or location – whether in a large capital city, regional centre or rural town. The aim is 'to create productive, sustainable and liveable places for people through leadership and the integration of design excellence’."