A plan to open a 24-hour McDonald’s restaurant on an inner-northern Melbourne street dubbed “the coolest in the world” has drawn the ire of locals.
An application to amend a planning permit for 323 High Street in Northcote was submitted to Darebin City Council on July 2 to “facilitate the establishment of a McDonald’s convenience restaurant” on Ruckers Hill.
Franc de Petro, a resident of Melbourne’s inner north, outside the location of a planned McDonald’s store in Northcote.Credit: Photograph by Chris Hopkins
Darebin City Council said on Tuesday the proposal was for a venue operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, but did not include a drive-through.
Although few details emerged until Tuesday, the prospect of the fast-food giant establishing another foothold in Melbourne’s gentrified inner north has already sparked an online petition in opposition with more than 1000 signatures.
Franc de Petro, who lives off High Street and administers a local Facebook group, spotted the planning application last week and knew it would cause controversy.
“A McDonald’s trading on this part of our street is unfathomable,” he said.
“High Street, especially on Ruckers Hill, has zero multinational franchise outlets and has plenty of locally run food outlets, many doing burgers of various kinds … It just doesn’t fit in or make any sense for Northcote.”
However, de Petro said the proposed McDonald’s site had become “an eyesore” that appeared hard to find a new tenant for, despite High Street’s popularity.
Darebin Council chief executive Anne Howard said a decision on the McDonald’s application was “still some months away” and it was under initial assessment.
“The proposal involves reusing the existing building that previously accommodated a cafe,” she said in a statement.
The disused site on High Street where a McDonald’s may be built.Credit: Photograph by Chris Hopkins
“The scale of the restaurant is similar to the former use, although it includes fewer seats – 112 in total (76 indoor and 36 outdoor), compared to the 252 seats previously approved.”
On Tuesday, McDonald’s Australia said in a statement it was “excited by the possibility of joining the Northcote community”.
“A new Macca’s in Northcote represents an investment of more than $2 million and will mean more than 100 new local jobs and more support for local community groups in the area.”
Credit: Matt Golding
Time Out magazine listed High Street – which runs through Northcote, Thornbury and Preston – as No.1 on its “world’s coolest street” rankings last year.
De Petro said the road was “the perfect balance of retail and entertainment”.
“It all currently aligns just beautifully, but if we get it wrong, the harmony it enjoys today could easily change,” he said.
The Northcote Business Association said it “strongly opposed” the McDonald’s plan and urged the council to block it.
“It will have dire implications to quite a few of our members who have food businesses,” president Andrew Mansfield said.
Northcote’s High Street in September 2024.Credit: Penny Stephens
“It will change the tone of what we are.”
Mansfield pointed out there were already McDonald’s outlets nearby in Clifton Hill and Preston, and asked whether a Northcote restaurant was necessary.
The proposed High Street site was once an arcade, but that closed in the 1980s.
Darebin Council sold the land to local businessman Akram El-Fahkri’s company in 2006 for $2.5 million, property records show. El-Fahkri confirmed there had been discussions with McDonald’s to lease the land, but declined to comment further as the process was ongoing.
The pedestrian alleyway adjacent to the site of the proposed new McDonald’s at 323 High Street.Credit: Photograph by Chris Hopkins
A covenant requires landowners to maintain a public walkway along the site’s edge to a car park.
The last tenant was The Pavillion restaurant, but it was destroyed by fire in September 2023.
Joe Farah, owner of Melbourne burger chain 300 Grams – which opened its first shop just doors down from the proposed McDonald’s – said he was “keeping a close eye on” any developments.
“The idea of a large multinational setting up right next door does raise concerns, particularly around how it might impact the character of the area and the local food scene,” he said.
“That said, the site has been a bit of an eyesore for a while now. So while it might not be the most popular choice, I guess it’s better than it staying abandoned.”
McDonald’s applies to build restaurant on High Street
The application seeks approval for the following amendments to the planning permit related to the former café occupying the site:
- Modifications to the permit preamble to reference the use of the land for the purpose of a convenience restaurant.
- Deletion of condition No. 2 of the permit which references the hours of operation of the previous café/restaurant use to enable the proposal to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week (the permit currently restricts operating hours to 6am–3am).
- Deletion of condition No. 3 of the permit which restricts plant equipment to be placed on the roof of the development.
- Deletion of condition No. 5 of the permit which removes the requirement for the walkway connecting High Street to the car park to the rear to be secured outside the operating hours of the use. With the use proposed to operate 24 hours a day, the public walkway would therefore not close at any time.
- Deletion of condition No. 8 of the permit to remove reference to a restriction on use of the premises as a live music or nightclub venue.
- Modifications to condition No. 9 to ensure the new use complies with updated Environment Protection Authority regulations.
Source: Darebin City Council
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