Repco, Officeworks, cafes: Not out of the question for Melbourne’s public towers

The Victorian government has proposed shoving retail stores and commercial offices into some of Melbourne’s public housing towers to get the most value for money out of the rebuilds announced last year, a series of newly published documents reveal.

A government spokeswoman said “our priority is to make the most of the towers sites to deliver housing for Victorians now and into the future”.

130 Racecourse Road, Flemington, pictured in 2021.Credit: Luis Enrique Ascui

Floor plans with 9300 square metres of shops have been drawn up by architects and then valued by consultants Ernst & Young for the Flemington tower at 130 Racecourse Road, in advice tabled in parliament on Thursday. It was dated just five days before then-premier Daniel Andrews delivered the government’s housing statement and announced plans to raze and rebuild all 44 towers.

Further advice that Homes Victoria commissioned from Ernst & Young, dated July last year, suggested the Collingwood estate could add a large store “such as an Officeworks or Repco” on Hoddle Street.

The consultants’ work was dubbed “Project High Rise”.

Andrews in September announced that all the ageing towers would be rebuilt to fit three times as many people. But of the 30,000 people who would live at the estates by 2051, only 11,000 would be in social housing – just 1000 more than the 10,000 who occupy the towers now. The remainder would be private apartments, with an unspecified number of affordable housing tenants.

“The redevelopment of Melbourne’s 44 high rise towers is Australia’s largest urban renewal project, set to boost social housing by at least 10per cent,” a spokeswoman said on Thursday.

“To keep the towers in a habitable condition, it would cost an estimated $2.3 billion over 20 years – and that doesn’t include improving building compliance with modern standards, a redevelopment that would also require tenant relocations.

“Instead, we are doing everything we can to build social and affordable homes faster and where people want to live, including by partnering with not-for-profit community housing providers who are experts in what they do.”

Twelve documents related to the project were published on Thursday after they were ordered by the upper house. The government refused to table another 146 documents, using a claim of executive privilege.

The government has not ruled out that retail and commercial spaces could be added to the sites. Designs remain under consideration and will be subject to further consultation.

The consulting firm recommended that retail stores should take up 5.5 per cent of the gross floor area or 2000 square metres, whichever is smaller, at the Hotham Estate in North Melbourne. Another 5.5 per cent or 2000 square metres could go towards commercial spaces, the advice said.

Debney Park Estate in Flemington could also hold 5 per cent or 3500 square metres of retail, and 1.5 per cent or 500 square metres of commercial spaces.

Ernst & Young suggested 1.5 per cent, or no more than 1000 square metres, of the gross floor area at the Collingwood estate could become retail. Another 2.5 per cent of the floor area — or 2000 square metres — could be commercial.

The document recommended that Atherton Gardens in Fitzroy could be home to up to 4000 square metres of retail, or 5 per cent of its gross floor area, plus another 1000 square metres for commercial. This would be focused around Gertrude and Brunswick streets.

Smaller spaces, such as cafes, were also recommended for the Kensington estate as well as the site on Lygon Street in Carlton. Smaller plots of retail and commercial was also listed for Langdon Park in Richmond, Horace Petty estate in South Yarra and on King Street in Prahran.

Retail or commercial spaces were not recommended for some of the estates, such as the Elgin and Nicholson street site in Carlton.

The firm calculated the possible value of the proposal.

“Due to the highly confidential and desktop nature of the estimates and the short timeframe to complete, we have been unable to undertake our usual valuation research,” Ernst & Young said regarding analysis for 130 Racecourse Road, Flemington.

Greens spokeswoman for public and affordable housing Samantha Ratnam moved the documents motion in the parliament last year, and on Thursday said all the remaining documents should be released. She said she still could see no justification for the demolition and rebuild of the estates and accused the government of prioritising private residential apartments over public housing.

“Based on the little that has been released, it appears Labor has decided to demolish and privatise Victoria’s 44 public housing towers based on some dot points on the back of an envelope,” Ratnam said.

The Victorian government has always argued the towers failed minimum standards and needed to be rebuilt.

The Victorian Auditor-General’s Office on Wednesday also separately tabled its report in to the big housing build, the government’s $5.3 billion plan to add 12,000 new social and affordable homes, and found the 2020 promise would be delayed by three years.

To stay on budget, fewer homes will be built on government land. More will be built and managed by community housing providers, and more affordable housing will be offered.

The watchdog said Victoria would need to build an extra 22,000 social homes by 2036 to maintain current levels, to match population growth.

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