KINGSTON Council has drafted a submission to the state’s planning minister outlining serious concerns about development plans at the former Kingswood golf site in Dingley Village. The site’s owner Satterley unveiled its development plans earlier this year. It plans to build 941 residential lots on the land. (“Controversial golf course plans revealed” The News 3/2/2025).
In April, the state government informed Kingston Council that its planning authority over the site had been removed. Kingston mayor Georgina Oxley said “we are extremely disappointed that this change was made without consultation or impact assessment.” “It makes the need for a clear and robust plan even more urgent,” Oxley said. “We have a significant track record of supporting well-planned growth – but it must be planned properly to respect local values, protect the environment and deliver the infrastructure and services needed.”
The mayor said that Kingston residents had serious concerns about the plans, including the loss of trees and open space, small lot sizes and housing density, increased traffic and road congestion, infrastructure constraints, drainage and flooding risks, and impact on neighbourhood character.
“While we understand the government has already rezoned the land, this is a major development in the heart of Dingley Village, which was never planned to have its golf course redeveloped. Therefore, it requires very careful planning every step of the way,” Oxley said. “This is very different to a new suburb on the fringes of Melbourne or extra housing in an activity centre, the Dingley Village community are rightly concerned about what this means for their neighbourhood. “Council is calling for a more balanced and better thought-out plan – one that protects the area’s vegetation and unique character, while ensuring required infrastructure is provided to keep pace with growth.”
Planning minister Sonya Kilkenny announced that the site had been rezoned for housing in late 2023 (“Golf course rezoning disappointing” The News 27/9/2023). Redevelopment plans were first presented by former site owner AustralianSuper in 2018 – the initial plans received around 8000 community objections.
Kingston Council’s submission to the state government reads “there is a lack of rigour in outlining the site’s attributes, values and constraints, and then detailing how the development plan has been informed by this analysis. It is unclear for example how the priority environmental values have been determined, and how this has been applied to the site and informed the development plan – this was a prominent criticism of the standing advisory committee of the previous development plan.
“There is also a lack of articulation of guiding principles for how the site will be developed. There is no overarching vision for the character of this estate and future built form. The development plan does not adequately reflect the site’s location and interfaces and does not articulate a well-considered site.”
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 4 June 2025