Wednesday, 19 June 2024

 Georgie CROZIER (Southern Metropolitan) presented a petition bearing 143 signatures:

The petition of certain citizens of the State of Victoria draws to the attention of the Legislative Council to the lack of community consultation regarding the redevelopment of the Barak Beacon public housing estate in Port Melbourne. The Government has reneged on the original low rise proposal and is now planning a private development with nine and 11 storey towers that will be harmful to both tenants and the community. Of the 408 units, zero will be public housing and only 130 will be privately managed social housing. The population on this 2.095 hectares is likely to exceed 1,200 people. This will result in 15 times the annual population growth for Port Melbourne in a single block, in a single year. In conjunction with the Fishermans Bend development, the local population will increase by about 80,000 within the next decade. The Port Melbourne population is currently 17,358. The Fishermans Bend Framework includes mandatory limits of six storeys and 174 dwellings per hectare adjacent to existing low scale development patterns in this part of Port Melbourne. The proposed Barak Beacon development of nine and 11 storey towers and 195 dwellings per hectare, which is equivalent to 408 dwellings in 2.095 hectares, is excessive by the Government’s own standards.

The petitioners therefore request that the Legislative Council call on the Government to reconsider the Barak Beacon development housing proposal and the available facilities, amenities, road infrastructure, community welfare and building by-laws and confine the development to its original target of three and four storey towers to reduce the dwellings from 408 to 250 public housing homes.