The Victorian Labor government is set to seize planning control of some of Melbourne’s most affluent suburbs in an effort to build thousands more homes, setting the stage for a fight with the opposition and local government.
The premier, Jacinta Allan, will announce an overhaul of planning rules in 50 inner-Melbourne areas located near public transport, including in Brighton, Malvern and Toorak, to allow for greater density.
She will argue young people are now “locked out” of these areas – despite being close to jobs, transport and services – due to low availability and high property prices.
Twenty-five of the 50 new “activity centres” to be unveiled on Sunday include Armadale, Hawksburn, Malvern and Toorak stations on the Frankston railway line, Auburn, Hawthorn and Glenferrie on the Belgrave-Lilydale line and North Brighton, Middle Brighton, Hampton and Sandringham on the Sandringham line.
The planning takeover will clear the way for “taller buildings” of between 10 and 20 storeys near the stations and “gentle, scaled height limits and more low-rise apartments and townhouses” of between three and six storeys alongside exisiting homes in the “walkable catchments” surrounding them.
The government said in these catchments, which will be up to 800 metres from the stations, the rights of residents to appeal development “will not change and heritage and landscape overlays will stay in place”.
However, residents could lose the power to appeal developments closer to stations.
The remaining 25 locations will be announced in late 2024, alongside the release of Plan Victoria, the government’s growth strategy for the state. The consultation process for all 50 new centres is likely to be completed by 2026, the government said.
KPMG urban economist Terry Rawnsley last month released a report that showed despite the Victoria’s growing population, some inner Melbourne suburbs had experienced a mass exodus of young people due to lack of affordable housing.
He said these young people were likely to move to outer areas of Melbourne, putting increased strain on transport and local infrastructure.
“These suburbs [named by the government] are some of the best served in the state when it comes to infrastructure – whether it’s transport, schools, open space, hospitals, access to jobs,” Rawnsley said.
“Getting more people living in there means we don’t have to build new schools and other infrastructure in the western greenfields.”
“Local residents might be concerned about change, but we live in a city, not a museum. If you think about places like Box Hill, Brunswick or South Yarra, they’ve kind of all gone through this transition over the last 30 years but still retain that suburban feel once you get away from the main activity.”
It follows a similar move in New South Wales, where the government has rezoned land around train stations.
The move will probably be met with support by groups such as the Property Council and Yimby Melbourne, which has argued amenity-rich suburbs must shoulder the burden of new housing. But it will face fierce opposition from councils, who have been critical of the government’s 10 existing activity centres, where 60,000 new homes are expected to be built by 2051.
They are located in Broadmeadows, Camberwell Junction, Chadstone, Essendon North, Epping, Frankston, Moorabbin, Niddrie, Preston and Ringwood.
In recent weeks, the state opposition has held a series of meetings with residents living near the 10 centres and vowed to oppose “any attempt to remove third-party rights in the planning process and any attempt by Labor to remove heritage protections”.
Of the 25 new activity centres, 14 are located within Liberal MPs’ seats, including three in the Hawthorn electorate of opposition leader, John Pesutto, three in the seat of Brighton, held by the shadow planning spokesperson, James Newbury, and seven in Michael O’Brien’s seat of Malvern.
Just seven are located in seats held by Labor MPs: Middle Footscray, West Footscray and Tottenham stations in Footscray, and Carnegie, Hughesdale, Murrumbeena and Oakleigh in the inner-east.
Three new activity centres are in the seat of Ringwood, held by expelled Labor MP turned crossbencher Will Fowles, and one is in the seat of Prahran, held by Greens MP Sam Hibbins.
Privately, several Labor MPs have told Guardian Australia they are “itching for a fight” against the Coalition on housing, as they believe it will help court not only millennial and gen Z voters – who now outnumber baby boomers on the electoral roll – but also their concerned parents.
“The Libs won’t be able to help themselves, they’ll behave like nimbys and oppose it all,” one Labor MP said.
In a statement on Sunday, the premier said her plan would give more young people the “opportunity to rent or buy a place that’s directly connected to public transport”.
“I know it won’t fix everything, but it will deliver more homes and new life to inner suburbs that are full of jobs, transport and services – where young buyers and renters are currently locked out,” Allan said.
The planning minister, Sonya Kilkenny, said changes would not occur overnight.
“This is about incremental change that sets Victoria up for the next generation, so we can have more opportunities for young people and better communities for everyone,” she said.
