Six storeys planned for Armadale street

In the Liberal-held electorate of Malvern, a developer plans to demolish five single-storey units on Mercer Road and build a six-storey apartment block with twenty-nine two-three bedroom apartments and two levels of underground parking.

Resident has no right to object

Dave Corrigan, who lives across the road, called the plan outrageous. Under Labor's new deemed to comply planning rules, his objections carry limited weight and his right to appeal has been stripped away.

“[It's] enough to almost make me consider moving, to be honest”

What deemed to comply means

If a development meets government standards, it can be approved without the usual scope for objections or appeals.

Labor's activity centres plan

Under the plan, designated areas around major train and tram routes are opened to intensive housing development, including buildings up to twenty storeys or higher in some locations. Armadale is among sixty designated activity centres.

Victoria needs millions of new homes

Labor says Victoria needs an estimated two point two four million additional homes by twenty fifty-one, with at least seventy percent targeted for established areas.

Planning minister defends the changes

State Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny says the existing planning system failed to provide enough housing in areas where people want to live.

“We cannot continue to have a planning system that continues to lock out Victorians from living in places where they want to live”

Councils stripped of meaningful influence

Stonnington Mayor Melina Sehr said residents assumed taller buildings would concentrate around railway stations and major roads, but that was no longer the case.

Box Hill shows high-density future

East of Melbourne's CBD, Box Hill offers an example of high-density housing. Danny Todica, fifty-two, lives in a two-bedroom apartment in a thirty-storey tower and said the convenience of apartment living is hard to beat.

“People still need to live somewhere. What you can do is give people opportunity to live in a great spot”

Former opponent now lives in tower

Phil Ward lived in Box Hill for forty-seven years and once campaigned against high-rise development.

“If you can't beat them, join them”

Congestion and green space under pressure

Ward said the transformation had come at a cost.Traffic congestion is now a major concern, while green space is increasingly under pressure from development.

“It only takes a little glitch and all of a sudden gridlock”

Residents face stark choice

Mayor Sehr said the new rules left residents with little choice when a proposal met state standards.

“They either sell or just put up with it”

Coalition pledges to restore local control

The Coalition has promised to scrap Labor's activity centres policy if elected, return third-party appeal rights to residents, and give councils a greater role in planning their communities.

“We believe that local communities should have a say in how their community grows”

Coalition attacks Labor's regional record

Wilson said a Coalition government would shift high-rise focus to Melbourne's CBD and inner city rather than impose density targets on established suburbs.

“We want to see a mix of homes right across this state”