Major population boom projected for Wyndham, Melton

Melbourne’s west is projected to house an extra 300,000 residents by 2036, putting a strain on housing as a massive population boom looms. See which other areas are on track for a population boost.

Melbourne’s booming west is set to blow out by an extra 300,000 people in the next 12 years amid a population boom that is feared will put a strain on infrastructure and housing.

New data – released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics – found Melbourne was projected to see up to a 52 per cent increase in households by 2046, making it the fastest growing city in the country.

Melbourne has been projected to add an extra 977,800 households by 2046 which would see the metropolitan area boast between 2.8 and 2.9 million homes.

Metro Melbourne’s population — currently at about 5.1 million — is projected to pass 8 million by 2051.

It comes after projections released in the recent Victoria in Future report said the state would require more than 1.6 million additional dwellings to house the growing population, with about 1.3 million of these needed in metropolitan Melbourne alone.

According to the report, the state’s population is projected to increase by an average of 125,000 per year, with Melbourne’s west expected to see the biggest population spike.

Wyndham – which includes suburbs like Tarneit, Point Cook and Werribee – is projected to add an extra 175,000 people into its rapidly growing municipality by 2036, growing at a rate of more than 3 per cent a year and making it the largest growth corridor in the state.

This would take the area’s population to close to half a million by 2040.

Wyndham’s population has surged past 320,000 people in recent years, becoming the second biggest LGA in Melbourne behind Casey in the outer southeast.

But Wyndham City Mayor Jennie Barrera said the area’s growth comes with “enormous challenges”.

“Wyndham City alone cannot fund the infrastructure and services required to meet

the growing needs of our community,” she said.

“More housing means more roads, more community centres and libraries, maternal

health services, schools, local parks and playgrounds, sports facilities, arts and

cultural infrastructure, waste management and a whole range of other services and

programs.

“Wyndham City will need constant investment in infrastructure from both Federal and

State Governments in order to keep pace with future development.

“Any significant increase in housing in Wyndham must be accompanied by matching

infrastructure.”

Last year council adopted the “Wyndham Plan” which aimed to turn the municipality into a booming urban metropolis within its own rail network and several vibrant city centres.

The map of the Wyndham Plan. Seven 'pulse suburbs' have been chosen to complement the development of a city centre by 2040.

Nearby Melton is also expected to experience similar growth, with more than 168,000 new residents expected to call the area home within the next decade.

The cities of Casey, Hume and Whittlesea have also been projected to see major growth in the next 10 years.

Mitchell Shire, which encompasses towns like Kilmore and Wallan, is projected to be the fastest growing municipality in the state, with its population expected to double within the next decade.

The area has been projected to add another 70,000 people by 2036 according to the Victoria in Future report, growing at 6 per cent every year.

The urban growth boundary for metropolitan Melbourne is just north of Wallan.

Mitchell Shire deputy mayor Nathan Clark said it was “absolutely critical” livable communities were built for the influx of new residents.

“We need to make sure we build good, proper communities that are going to survive for the next 1000 years in Melbourne,” he said.

“These are Melbourne’s newest metropolitan suburbs and people might not be mindful of that right now, they may see big fields with crops but the intent is to build up to the urban growth boundary north of Wallan and backfill it all the way down the Hume Hwy towards the Hume region.”

Alongside Hume and Whittlesea, Mitchell Shire is part of the Cloverfield MAC (Metropolitan Activity Centre) project, which is planned to be a new bustling hub in Melbourne’s north with various town centres, schools and healthcare facilities.

Cr Clark said council expected a “significant increase” in people in their 30s and young families into the region.

Greater Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo, Baw Baw and Moorabool are projected to see the biggest growth of the state’s regional LGAs.

Ballarat’s population is projected to grow by an extra 30,000 people by 2036, with Bendigo’s expected to increase by another 28,000.

Last year Victoria attracted more than 185,000 new residents, overtaking NSW as the fastest growing state in the country.