Thursday, 16 October 2025

 John PESUTTO (Hawthorn) (17:25): (1354) My action is for the Minister for Planning. The action I seek is that the minister meet with my local residents to discuss the proposed activity centres for Hawthorn, Glenferrie and Auburn, which will see in the case of Hawthorn 16 storeys or more, in the case of Glenferrie 12 storeys or more and in the case of Auburn 16 storeys or more. I say ‘or more’ because under this planning system, as it is evolving under this government, there are no integrity safeguards anymore. This government will do whatever deals it likes behind closed doors, whether it is the public interest uplift scheme, which it has buried in the amendments, or its development facilitation program, which has already seen many thousands of apartments be approved without any proper scrutiny or oversight.

On Monday night I held a forum in my electorate at Glenferrie Primary School, and around 200 or more people turned up. They were angry, they were concerned and they are not being listened to. We went through, in the course of our discussion, a number of issues. On the panel was me, my colleagues from the other place David Davis and Georgie Crozier, respected commentator Max Shifman and also a local and dedicated representative from the community on these matters, Jane Oldham, who is a member and president of the Boroondara Community Group, which has been active and a very constructive voice for the community’s concerns about these planning proposals. The first message that we imparted to our very large and concerned audience was: the government’s proposal is not going to lead to affordable housing in any of these activity centres. It is common knowledge that the return on investment for developments, certainly in my area, will be around about $15,000 a square metre, and that is a common rule of thumb that is used. That is going to produce two-bedroom and three-bedroom apartments that are well over $1 million. Now, you find me a young couple or a young person who, in the absence of a bequest or an endowment from parents or grandparents, is going to be able to afford that. They are not going to be able to afford that. That is the first thing – the affordability argument collapses.

The amenity, character and neighbourhood arguments resoundingly suggest that 16-storey buildings anywhere in these areas – or for that matter Thornbury, Moonee Valley or wherever else these things are being proposed – are going to destroy these communities because they are not sensitive to local needs, site-specific needs or infrastructure needs. They are going to destroy the livability and amenity of these areas. The government has just developed these plans without any proper consultation, and our approach on this side of the chamber is to work constructively with councils and local communities to get the best outcomes that will deliver better standards of living for our people.