Tasmanian Liberal Speaker Sue Hickey says she is "alarmed" just 5 per cent of the State Government's proposed housing development in Hobart's south might be set aside for social housing.

Locals were notified earlier this month the 37-hectare government-owned site at Huntingfield, near Kingston, would be rezoned to inner-residential areas under the Housing Supply Act 2018.

The act allows the State Parliament to bypass the council and "fast track" the rezoning of new land to create affordable and social housing.

The Huntingfield proposal would see more than 450 new dwellings built, including a mix of social, affordable and private housing.

But the Kingborough council says initial discussions with the Government indicate just "up to 5 per cent … would be provided for 'social housing', with the remainder to be for private development".

The council says "there has been no indication to date as to how much 'affordable housing' will be provided".

Ms Hickey urged the Government not to waste an opportunity to show leadership when it came to social and affordable housing.

"I find that [discussion of five per cent] a little alarming," she said.

"If it is government land and this is an opportunity to increase our housing stock … I really would like to encourage the Minister [Roger Jaensch] to consider 15 per cent," she said.

"It's probably a once in a long, long time before we get something as clear cut as this [development opportunity] again.

"It's a really good neighbourhood, it's a great place for families to grow up and it's also relatively close to services."

Shelter Tasmania chief executive Patti Chugg said the Government should address housing issues.

"It's really important that the State Government makes sure that when there's a new site like this, that at least 15 per cent of those properties are affordable or social housing," she said.

"We have such a chronic shortage of affordable homes, we've got a growing homelessness population. We need to put all the bits together and we know that most important bit is getting more social housing built.

"We don't believe, looking at such a high need across our community for more affordable homes, that 5 per cent is good enough."

The land in Huntingfield earmarked for a social, affordable, and private housing development. ( ABC News: Mitchell Woolnough )

Five per cent 'pretty paltry', expert says

Kingborough Mayor Dean Winter said while it was the Government's call as to how much was set aside for affordable and social housing, the council would prefer to see the numbers boosted.

"We know that the emergency rezoning legislation that the Government has used for this project is supposed to be for affordable [and social] housing," he said.

"I think that the expectation is that when you're using that particular legislation, you're actually going to be adding to the supply of affordable [and social] homes."

Dean Winter wants to see the affordable and social housing numbers boosted. ( ABC News: Lucy MacDonald )

He also said he was not aware of any land specifically set aside for affordable housing.

"As I understand it, some of these blocks will be quite small and perhaps the State Government is looking at the relatively low price for purchasing those that may hit some definition of affordable," he said.

Kathleen Flanagan, the University of Tasmania's housing expert, said the problem with the rezoning legislation was that it did not guarantee land would be set aside for social and affordable housing.

"When this legislation was put forward, it was done so with the assumption that it would be used to address Tasmania's housing crisis," she said.

"I can understand that the Government might want to have a mixed development, but I think 5 per cent is pretty paltry, particularly given the scale of the need that we're seeing in Tasmania for social housing at the moment.

"Generally speaking, I think that 15 per cent is a modest target."

In a statement, a Government spokesperson said the percentage of social and affordable housing was yet to be determined.

"The Huntingfield Land Supply Order that is currently out for consultation is to fast-track the rezoning process only. It is not a development application," the spokesperson said.

"The final lot yield and the likely number of social and affordable housing homes it still to be determined, once the land has been rezoned through this legislative process."

Mr Jaensch later said he expected that "social and affordable housing, combined, will be around 15 per cent of the total residential allocation".