CEO update

Call for strategic site suggestions 

Over the coming weeks we will be considering strategic sites that the Minister for Planning, the Hon Richard Wynne MP, could potentially include in the VPA’s 2018/19 work program or beyond.

Strategic sites are parcels of land located within established Melbourne suburbs and regional towns and cities that can be unlocked through structure planning, rezoning and infrastructure coordination. They are sites within existing suburbs that have an opportunity to evolve, such as former industrial areas in inner and middle Melbourne. Strategic sites are not greenfield sites.

As we develop our program, we want to make sure we are aware of as many opportunities as possible, which is why your feedback is important to us.

If you are aware of a site/area that you believe has potential to boost jobs or housing, which you think would benefit from the VPA’s planning expertise, please let us know. Sites that are supported for rezoning by the responsible councils are particularly of interest.

For further information, please contact Paul Byrne, by emailing paul.byrne@vpa.vic.gov.au

Planning for the future of Preston Market

The Preston Market site has huge significance to its local community and beyond. The Minister for Planning, the Hon Richard Wynne MP, has asked the VPA to review the planning controls applying to the site in partnership with the City of Darebin, the owners of Preston Market, the traders and the broader community.

We acknowledge that a successful market depends on much more than just having the right planning controls in place. This is why we are asking everyone who loves, works in or visits the market to tell us through the first round of consultation:

What do you love about Preston Market?

What makes Preston Market unique? This could relate to a place, people or an experience unique to Preston Market.

When planning for the future of the market, what could be changed or improved?

Click here to provide this feedback using our interactive map. This information will help the VPA establish an overarching vision for the site and better understand which aspects of the market people are keen to see continue. Find out more >>

Greater Broadmeadows Framework Plan endorsed

Minister for Planning, the Hon Richard Wynne MP, has endorsed a land-use framework seeking to boost connectivity, improve the public realm and drive jobs growth in Broadmeadows.

The Greater Broadmeadows Framework Plan sets directions for the urban renewal of more than 1300 hectares of land in Broadmeadows and Campbellfield.

Economic modelling indicates that employment in this area has the potential to increase from approximately 14,500 jobs currently to 27,500 by 2050, and this plan will capitalise on the area’s strengths.

The VPA and Hume City Council created the plan over a two-year period, informed by extensive stakeholder and community input, and it was endorsed by council in December 2017.

The plan includes a vision of a revitalised Broadmeadows town centre that is a vibrant place to meet, shop and do business. It also includes proposals for new cycling and walking paths and identifies areas in Greater Broadmeadows that are ripe for public and private sector development.

The endorsement by the Minister for Planning, the Hon Richard Wynne MP, confirms the State Government’s support for the plan. Hume City Council is now responsible for implementing key recommendations of the plan, including detailed structure planning and related planning scheme amendments to unlock appropriate development.

Next steps for the VPA will be to work with Hume City Council on planning and rezoning the former industrial land in the Meadowlink precinct east of the Craigieburn train line. Find out more >>

New community for Shepparton

At council’s request the Minister for Planning, the Hon Richard Wynne MP, has appointed the VPA as the planning authority on a number of exciting projects for Greater Shepparton City Council.

This week, the VPA and Greater Shepparton City Council released a comprehensive plan for a new community in Shepparton.

The draft Shepparton North East Precinct Structure Plan will add new provisions to the Shepparton Planning Scheme to unlock development of a suburb with 1,500 new homes, a local convenience centre and community facility, five local parks, and drainage and transport networks.

The draft plan applies to 177 hectares of land bound by Verney Road to the west, Ford Road to the north, Grahamvale Road to the east and a Goulburn-Murray Water drainage reserve to the south.

The precinct has been designed to weave in the area’s existing landscape features and topography, embracing Shepparton’s regional city character.

The plan has now been released for public comment. The closing date for submissions to be received by the VPA is Friday 13 April 2018.

This is a great example of the role of the VPA in the regions – working with councils and local stakeholders to unlock opportunities that will support economic growth and community development in Victoria’s regional cities and towns. The VPA is currently working on the broader Shepparton and Mooroopna 2050: Regional City Growth Plan and is in the process of refining a precinct structure plan for Shepparton South East. Find out more >>

Clarity on VPA’s role welcomed

The VPA has welcomed a new Ministerial direction providing greater certainty about the VPA’s role when it is not the planning authority but is providing advice and/or preparing documentation for councils.

Ministerial Direction 18 states that whenever a council or another planning authority is proposing amendments to a planning scheme that affect an area in relation to which the VPA (or its predecessors) is, or has been, commissioned to provide advice, then the planning authority must “consult with the VPA and have regard to its advice”.

When preparing an amendment, the planning autority must include an explanatory report detailing how any provisions “give effect to the intended outcomes sought by the VPA”.

The Ministerial direction is a strong reflection of the VPA’s status as the State Government’s strategic spatial planning agency, and of the VPA’s commitment to working with councils across the state to drive spatial planning solutions. The Ministerial direction can be found here.

Finally

Please call our office or me on (03) 9651 9600 if you have any questions or suggestions on these or any other items.