Chapel St, South Yarra 22-storey tower gets Stonnington Council green light

CHAPEL St will soon be home to another sky-high monolith following Stonnington Council’s decision to give the green light to a 22-storey tower.

The 22-storey tower as shown in Stonnington Council's agenda. Picture: Supplied

CHAPEL St will soon be home to another sky-high monolith following Stonnington Council’s decision to give the green light to a 22-storey tower.

The mammoth $115 million project will include 158 apartments, two levels of office space, shops, a maternal and child health centre and five levels of basement parking at 671 Chapel St, South Yarra.

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The applicant, Planning & Property Partners, originally filed plans for a 32-storey mixed-use structure with 352 dwellings, office and retail space in mid-2015, but the design was reduced by 10 storeys and other modifications made following consultation with council staff.

More than 30 objections were filed against the project, mostly against the tower’s size and the impact the project would have on traffic and parking.

Councillors failed to make a decision on the application following a lengthy debate earlier this month, and the matter was deferred to Monday night’s Malvern Town Hall meeting.

Cr Matthew Koce objected to the tower, labelling it an overdevelopment of the site.

Cr Koce said the project would cause significant overshadowing for nearby properties, including nearby Melbourne High School.

“Melbourne High is meant to be a castle on a hill, it’s turning more and more into a sand castle,” Cr Koce said.

Stonnington councillor Matthew Koce says the development will cause significant overshadowing for nearby properties. Picture: Paul Loughnan

But Cr Marcia Griffin said the application, although taller than the preferred 12-storey height limit for the area, was within the context of nearby buildings, which were of a similar size or taller.

She said many objectors who attended a community consultative meeting held by the applicant last November were unaware the height of the building had been reduced and were relieved to hear it would now be only 22 storeys.

The permit was granted in a 5-2 vote.

The tower will be located in South Yarra’s Forrest Hill precinct, an area popular with developers and already home to a number of high-rise developments.

It will still be dwarfed by the nearby Capitol Grand building, which is currently under construction at the corner of Toorak Rd and Chapel St and will reach up 50 storeys once completed.

Council staff also noted in a report that the site was suited for higher density development due to its proximity to services and facilities such as public transport.