The evolution of Greenfields development in Victoria

  • The former Growth Areas Authority (GAA) was created in 2006 to address the lack of coordinated planning and development across Melbourne’s greenfields sites.
  • Before this, a lack of coordination and planning led to poor outcomes in many developments, with councils lacking the ability to raise funds to provide proper infrastructure.
  • With years of thoughtful and comprehensive planning by the GAA, hand-in-hand with councils and developers, we now have a greenfield sector that leads the country for affordability, diversity and design at significant scale to meet demand.
  • The GAA/MPA/VPA has designed over 60 new suburbs and employment areas in Melbourne’s growth areas in the past decade. These have been done in concert with local councils and have enabled the planning and funding of many key infrastructure items.
  • Unlike in the past, Victoria’s growth areas are meticulously planned. They are strategically located along major transport corridors, and come complete with detailed plans for schools, jobs hubs, open space and community facilities.
  • These growing communities’ infrastructure is funded by developer contributions, the Growth Areas Infrastructure Contribution (GAIC), government and council budget allocations where needed.
  • Open space is now a dominant part of these new suburbs, as is the preservation of key environmental and heritage features.
  • The GAA helped design new funding streams from developers that will progressively deliver $8-9 billion for core council infrastructure, around $3-3.5 billion towards state infrastructure and a similar amount of funding for the high-standard management of stormwater.
  • It is a great competitive advantage for Victorians to be able to purchase a home in the greenfields for $200,000 cheaper than a comparable site in Sydney – often significantly closer to the city than the greenfields of Sydney.
  • With a competitive market and a land supply of some 10-15 years of Precinct Structure Plans (PSP) approved land, we are well placed to accommodate further growth – while still keeping the emphasis on urban infill and a permanent urban growth boundary with a 30+ year capacity.
  • The VPA works within government to assist with the planning and coordination of infrastructure.