HOMES will be able to be built slightly higher but not wider, depending on the size of a block, according to changes made by the state government to Plan Melbourne 2017-2050 development guidelines.
Labor Planning Minister Richard Wynne announced this month that mandatory height limits for properties built in General Residential Zones will be 11 metres, up from nine metres.
The maximum height for Neighbourhood Residential Zones — classed as “no growth” areas — is nine metres.
Kingston Council in 2014 asked the state government to class 75 per cent of Kingston as “non-growth” NRZ as part of a review of residential zones instigated by the previous Liberal National coalition state government.
That request was denied last year by the Independent Residential Zones Standing Advisory Committee, formed to liaise with councils, and council was advised to rethink its future housing policy.
Some councillors were concerned the Kingston area has been earmarked for “excessive” development while suburbs such as those in Melbourne’s east are protected from overdevelopment.
Mr Wynne announced the Plan Melbourne changes on a visit to Mentone despite the ongoing uncertainty around how much of the Kingston area will be classed GRZ or NRZ.
Blocks of between 400-500 square metres will now have to have at least 25 per cent of land allocated for garden space.
Blocks between 501-600 metres need 30 per cent and blocks bigger than 650 square metres must have a 35 per cent garden area.
Mr Wynne said the Plan Melbourne changes were aimed at “protecting the much-loved Aussie backyard”.
“The Liberals’ attempt at Plan Melbourne missed the mark. It virtually ignored housing affordability and didn’t address the need to plan to manage population growth without allowing over-development,” he said in a statement.
“We’ve refreshed the vision and plugged the gaps, ensuring Victoria has plans to cater for population growth, deal with climate change and deliver a record pipeline of infrastructure.”
State Liberal opposition leader Matthew Guy, formerly the state’s planning minister, told The News the state government changes will encourage overdevelopment.
“This is just a ploy by the government to force density upon every street in every suburb across Melbourne,” Mr Guy said. “Our plan was to put activities areas as the growth centres for growth and leave the rest of the suburbs alone.
“This government wants nothing left alone. They’re going to leave it as a development free for all. Every street will be open slather for apartment or units and, to me, that is inappropriate development.”
The door to high-rise development in central Mentone was opened by Mr Wynne in late 2015 when he intervened to change “mandatory” four-story height limits in Kingston Council’s Mentone Activity Centre Structure Plan to “discretionary” limits.
After more than a year of asking the reason, on several occasions, for the intervention on height limits in the Mentone Activity Centre, The News finally received an answer this month.
“Mandatory height controls are at odds with the whole idea of Activity Centres. We want these locations to be flexible enough to cater for a variety of developments that suit the local area,” Planning Minister spokesman Patrick Lane said.
“Any proposed development outside the discretionary height limits would have to be put to the public for consultation and, if approved, could be appealed at VCAT.”
The Plan Melbourne changes announced this month do not change the “discretionary” limits for the Mentone Activity Centre.
Kingston Council planning and development general manager Jonathan Guttmann said council will consider resubmitting proposals for Kingston’s residential zones following the changes.
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 22 March 2017
