Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan has come under fire for plans to develop 50 sites around Melbourne’s inner-city transport network as the state grapples with a housing crisis.
The proposed sites would centre around well-serviced train stations, and high-rises and townhouses would be built, providing 30,000 additional homes for Victorians by 2051.
When announcing the plan on Oct. 20, Allan said some of the first 25 zones would be close to stations, including Hawthorn, Toorak, Brighton, Armadale, Tottenham, Carnegie, and Glen Iris.
“Building more homes around these zones means young people and families will have more opportunity to rent or buy a place, close to public transport, jobs and services,” she said on X, formerly Twitter.
Member for Goldstein Zoe Daniel criticised the plan for a lack of consultation and planning.
The “teal” independent said provisions needed to be made for childcare, healthcare, schools, and transport, and the character of the chosen suburbs would be affected.
“Of course we need to address the shocking intergenerational inequity that governments have created, but again the state government is telling the newspapers what’s going on, on its housing policy, before consulting with communities,” she said on X.
“You can’t just make up housing policy and announce it in the newspapers. I hope the state has some kind of a plan to consult our community. If it does, I haven’t seen it yet.”
Allan stated the timing was right for the plan, however, saying the government had upgraded schools and kindergartens in the proposed zones, removed 84 level crossings, and was developing the Metro Tunnel to ensure adequate public transport.
The Labor premier called herself a “builder, not a blocker” and said people opposing housing developments prevented young people from getting into homes.
“I challenge anyone to say to a young Victorian why they want to be a blocker, not a builder when it comes to having their hopes and dreams dashed week-in, week-out in being able to find their own home,” she said.
Victoria’s Opposition Leader John Pesutto labelled Allan’s plan “inaccessible,” saying the homes would not go to those who needed them most.
“All of Melbourne will be blanketed with these high rises that are very expensive to build,” he said.
“They’re going to be well out of reach of Victorians who desperately need housing.”
Pesutto also criticised Allan’s government for announcing the plan during the caretaker period for local government elections, effectively denying councillors the space to be involved.
“The government hasn’t consulted,” he said.
“You get no voice and you get no choice.
“It’s made sure that it’s dropped this latest desperate announcement when local municipal authorities ... and local council candidates can’t be in any position to meaningfully engage on these issues.”
Community members have also expressed ire at the plans.
Moonee Valley local Peter Riley said residents wanted a proper community consultation.
“We were just shocked when we heard the drastic changes that are expected to take place within our community,” he said.
Construction Call
Meanwhile, the Business Council of Australia has mooted a new plan to rezone more land and set up a national fund to build more homes and reduce the cost of construction to address the housing crisis.“Australia has a housing supply crisis and we need urgent action from all levels of government to fix it,” CEO Bran Black said.
“We want the federal government to create a new national reform fund, like the one created in the 1990s, that incentivises states to fix regulation and planning bottlenecks that hold back homes being built.”
The plan would rely on skilled migrant labour to address worker shortages.
Federal opposition housing spokesman Michael Sukkar said he supported some of the plans, while Labor noted that the organisation’s ideas were similar to those it had already implemented in existing housing policy.
