The Victorian Government has finalised planning controls for Melbourne’s last two Inner City Train and Tram Zones, clearing the way for an estimated 35,000 additional homes across the Melbourne and Yarra council areas as part of its long-term housing strategy.
Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny released the final controls on Sunday, completing the government’s Train and Tram Zone Activity Centre Program, which now covers 50 activity centres and 10 pilot precincts across Victoria.
The latest planning framework applies to four inner-city precincts: Macaulay in North Melbourne, Fitzroy and Collingwood, Richmond, and Alphington. The changes are designed to encourage more housing close to public transport while setting building height limits and development standards for each area.
At Macaulay, developments of between four and 15 storeys will be supported, with the tallest buildings concentrated near CityLink before stepping down towards established residential streets.
Across Fitzroy and Collingwood, heights will generally range from two to five storeys in heritage areas, while strategic redevelopment sites such as the former Porter Factory in Alphington will accommodate buildings of up to eight storeys. Around North Richmond Station, developments of up to 10 storeys will be permitted, with buildings of up to 12 storeys supported along major tram corridors including Victoria Parade.
Unlike other Train and Tram Zones, the inner-city program focuses on selected strategic sites rather than widespread rezoning across entire suburbs. The government says it will continue working with the Melbourne and Yarra councils to identify further locations suitable for future housing.
Ms Kilkenny said the changes were intended to address long-standing constraints on housing supply in well-serviced parts of the city.
“For years, some of Melbourne’s best-connected suburbs have been locked up and it’s pushing young people and families out. We’re changing that,” she said.
She said the planning reforms would help more Victorians live close to transport, schools and employment, adding: “Our reforms are about making sure more Victorians can live close to great trains, trams, schools and jobs.”
The completion of the statewide program means planning controls are now in place to accommodate capacity for more than 300,000 additional homes near trains, trams and employment centres by 2051, according to the Victorian Government.
Housing policy remains a key political battleground ahead of the state election, with the government using the announcement to contrast its planning agenda with that of the Opposition.
Ms Kilkenny criticised the Liberal Party’s approach to housing, saying: “The Liberals don’t have a housing plan, they have a protest plan. If there’s a new home proposed anywhere in Melbourne, they’ll be there campaigning against it.”
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