A childcare centre will be built in an industrial zone with chemical smells after a tribunal approved the development and ruled the children could play indoors “if the odour is particularly strong”.
Childcare operator John Zhuang took his application to build a new childcare centre on Myrtle Street in Glen Waverley, in Melbourne’s south-east, to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) this year after the Monash Council rejected his proposal.
Monash councillor Josh Fergeus outside the approved site for a new childcare centre in an industrial zone in Glen Waverley.Credit: Chris Hopkins
Zhuang’s plan, which received five submissions of support and two objections, is to redevelop the site with a two-level, 90-place childcare centre with two outdoor areas by 2027, amid rising demand for the service.
However, the council argued such a facility at the location was inappropriate because it threatened both existing commercial activity and the amenity for children and educators.
The land is in an industrial zone close to businesses that use chemicals for their operations, including a manufacturer of anti-slip surfaces and a printing warehouse, which are behind the childcare site on Aristoc Road.
Zhuang appealed the council’s decision at VCAT, where tribunal member Katherine Paterson overturned the council’s refusal.
An artist’s impression of the proposed childcare centre in the industrial zone on Myrtle Street.
Paterson ruled that odours were unlikely to be harmful, children would not be disturbed by surrounding noise and existing businesses would not be unreasonably affected.
She acknowledged that chemical smells would be present when children were playing outside, but a report from the applicant’s environmental consultant showed these were highly unlikely to be harmful.
“The operators of the childcare centre may wish to alter activities accordingly, such as limiting the use of the outdoor spaces if the odour is particularly strong. However, based on the evidence I am satisfied that there would be no human health reason to do so,” Paterson said in her ruling.
Monash Mayor Nicky Luo said Paterson’s statement was “disappointing and naive”.
“It clearly shows how the location is inappropriate for a childcare centre and implies that the childcare centre will keep the children inside if odour is present outside,” she said.
Luo said the council’s position was unchanged and while there was a local need for more childcare facilities, they were best located outside industrial zones.
A council spokesman said the VCAT decision ignored state policy about permitting incompatible uses side by side.
The spokesman said when a sensitive operation such as a childcare centre was established in commercial areas, noise and odour complaints increased, which constrained existing and future businesses.
A street view of the approved site for a new childcare centre on Myrtle Street, Glen Waverley.Credit: Chris Hopkins
Councillor Dr Josh Fergeus, a child welfare expert, said the council did not reject applications lightly.
“Kids and heavy industry generally don’t mix,” Fergeus said.
“I believe a reasonable person walking past the site would be surprised that a childcare facility would be built there. There are loud noises, fumes and many sites in the area regularly use toxic chemicals.”
Fergeus said he was concerned that childcare centre operators would not have the requisite knowledge about unsafe odours.
“The activities conducted by nearby businesses may also change over time – how will the potential impact on children be assessed?” he said.
Zhuang, who runs two other childcare centres in Melbourne’s south-east, said childcare services were needed in Glen Waverley but due to high levels of development, it was difficult to find land parcels that were large enough.
He said the council had initially supported the idea of a childcare centre on the site before he bought the property for $2.6 million in 2021.
“They left me no choice but to go to VCAT,” he said.
Zhuang said the chemical odours were comprehensively assessed and VCAT accepted the evidence that they were highly unlikely to be harmful.
He said the area had a mixed character, with residential homes on one side of Myrtle Street and a play centre and dance school nearby.
He said as a parent, he wanted to create a benefit for the community.
“Child safety is certainly the most important factor in my development considerations,” he said.
Jack Gargano, who owns three lots next to the site, was concerned that neighbouring industrial businesses would cop complaints from parents and educators.
Gargano, an objector to the plan, said children would be playing right on the boundary of his site. He is currently rebuilding warehouses on his land to rent to businesses.
“I wouldn’t be sending my kids there,” he said.
“To have childcare stuck in the middle [of the industrial activities] is not right. It should be on the corner or ... on the peripheral end.”
Carolyn Smith, the early education director at the United Workers Union, said it was essential for children and educators to work in environments that were safe and conducive to learning.
“This includes minimising exposure to noise, odours and chemicals,” she said.
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