Melbourne suburbs could be changed forever as part of Suburban Rail Loop plans

The Allan government has been lashed over plans to rezone swathes of Melbourne around Suburban Rail Loop stations, with the opposition calling for plans to be halted until the project is fully funded.

There are concerns people living in the suburbs with SRL stations won’t necessarily use the line and we could end up with ‘ghost trains’.

An area 24 times the size of Docklands will be put under state control to allow high-rise development as part of the first stage of the Suburban Rail Loop project.

The Allan government is set to rezone huge swathes of Melbourne to increase density around the stations of its $35nn SRL East, between Cheltenham and Box Hill.

Maps showing street-by-street boundaries of the new planning areas have been released, with an incredible 4500ha – or 45 sq km – of land going under the control of the state’s Suburban Rail Loop Authority.

The circled area shows the total size of higher density development precincts, if combined.

Two precincts around Clayton and Monash University stations have been merged to create a mega urban renewal area that is nine times the size of Docklands.

The other four areas, in Cheltenham, Glen Waverley, Burwood and Box Hill, vary between 6.5 sq km and 7.5 sq km.

The state opposition on Wednesday warned Melburnians living along the proposed train line that they would be stripped of their rights if the Allan government forged ahead with its plan to build the “giant high-rise towers”.

Opposition spokesman for Planning James Newbury on Wednesday said Labor’s new plan to transform the southeast would silence the views of 150,000 locals situated around the train stations.

“Under the cover of Christmas, Jacinta Allan is about to swing the wrecking ball through Melbourne suburbs,” he said.

“Jacinta Allan is packing people into five suburbs and taking away their rights to a say about the amenity of their local communities.”

Opposition spokesman for Planning James Newbury says Labor’s new plan to transform the southeast will silence the views of 150,000 locals. Picture: Luis Enrique Ascui

Mr Newbury said the plans wouldn’t just affect those living around the corner from the train stations along the Suburban Rail Loop.

“It’s not just near train lines. We know that 45 sq km of Melbourne has been exempt from planning laws,” he said.

“We know that around those five suburbs about seven kms will be densified and we will see over development across all of those five areas.”

The senior Liberal called for the government to halt plans until the “$200bn project” was fully funded, warning Victorians that they’d be footing the bill for any mismanagement of funds.

“They should not be signing contracts when they can’t explain how they’re going to pay for this project,” he said.

“When they can’t pay for this project Victorians are going to pay for it with higher taxes.”

The Allan government is set to rezone huge swathes of Melbourne. Picture: David Crosling

Professor Michael Buxton, an environment and planning expert at RMIT University, likened radical changes coming to middle Melbourne suburbs to the overhauls of 19th Century European capitals and modern Asian cities, where they were effectively “pulled down and rebuilt”.

Town and Country Planning Association president Marianne Richards described it as urban renewal on an “unprecedented scale”.

Precinct visions for SRL stations released by the government last month, which will guide community consultation on building height limits, show high-rise “clusters” around stations and medium-scale density up to 1600m from stations.

An investment case for the SRL released in 2021 included the 1600m boundary concept, but street-by-street maps released this month show some precincts have boundaries even further from stations.

The radical changes coming to middle Melbourne suburbs have been compared to the overhauls of 19th-Century European capitals and modern Asian cities. Picture: Suburban Rail Loop Authority

Community groups have sounded the alarm on the creeping borders, but the Suburban Rail Loop Authority said they were set based on a range of factors including appropriateness for development, waterways, and major roads.

Ms Richards said a multi-decade project like the SRL must be planned properly, but the fact the government was chasing up to a third of funding for the project through value capture meant height would be prioritised over amenity.

“The only way you capture value is to increase it,” she said.

There are plans for high-rise ‘clusters’ around stations and medium-scale density up to 1600m from stations.

The SRL Authority, which is overseeing construction of the project, is now a planning authority and will decide what development can occur in precincts, subject to ministerial approval.

It is set to release draft planning scheme amendments, which determine land use in a particular area, late next year.

A spokesman said “extensive feedback from the community and careful planning would ensure this project transforms our public transport system for the better”.

“With Melbourne’s population set to be the size of London’s by the 2050s, we can’t afford not to build this city-shaping project,” they said.

“The SRL is a key part of how we manage that growth and provide more housing options closer to jobs, services and great public transport.”

Michael Buxton, professor of planning at RMIT

Professor Buxton said the amount of land subject to new decision-making powers was “massive” and Melbourne could be heading towards urban renewal like in 19th Century Europe where cities were effectively “pulled down and rebuilt”.

“It’s moving towards the Asian city model of the last 40 years,” he said.

“There’s nothing like it really being done in Australia.”

Prof Buxton said the government’s estimates of how many people would be living in affected suburbs were “ludicrously low” given that the full 90km SRL, from Cheltenham to Werribee, could cost $200bn.

He said even if there were huge numbers of people living in the suburbs with SRL stations, it didn’t guarantee they would use the line and “we could end up with ghost trains”.

The government has previously been accused of “mass deception” for failing to outline how new skyscraper suburbs will take shape, and what will be built.

At a public lecture to the Institute of Transportation Engineers, Prof Buxton, Graham Currie and John Stanley took aim at the loop.

Nagoya Station in Japan is surrounded by skyscrapers. Picture: Supplied

Professor Currie displayed a photo of Nagoya railway station in Japan, surrounded by skyscrapers, next to one of low-density Clayton to illustrate the potential transformation.

Long-term Box Hill resident, Kevin Earl, said the area already had high rises but some were half-empty and it was unclear what the strategy would be for future growth.

Mr Earl said it was a far cry from the suburb he knew as a younger man when there were only a few dozen families in his street.

“Everyone knew each other and kicked the footy up and down the street,” he said.

“There’s lots going on now, but there are issues.”

Opposition transport infrastructure spokesman David Southwick warned planners and economists agreed that the government wouldn’t be able to raise the budgeted third of the project cost via value capture, so Victorians would have to suffer higher taxes or get fewer services.