As growth area development plan approvals have slowed in recent years, Casey Council and developers are concerned that reduced land supply has impacted housing affordability, while planning experts urge that essential infrastructure should be extended before new suburbs are established.
Victorian Planning Authority (VPA), which is under the Department of Transport and Planning (DTP), approved two Precinct Structure Plans (PSPs) in 2023-24, completed five in 2022–23 and nine in 2021–22.
The approval number for 2024-25 is unknown now, as the annual report hasn’t been published yet.
PSP is a blueprint for developing new suburbs in growth areas, outlining land use, infrastructure, and services needed to support future communities.
Four PSPs are currently in progress in Casey’s growth areas: Croskell (Employment), Casey Fields South (Employment) and Devon Meadows, and Clyde South.
City of Casey Manager Growth and Investment Kathryn Seirlis noted that the Minister for Planning last approved a residential PSP in Casey in 2019.
“Since then, the development of existing zoned residential land in Casey’s growth areas has reduced available supply, which has impacted affordability,” she said.
“To maintain housing affordability in Casey, it’s critical that the Croskell (Employment) and Casey Fields South (Employment) and Devon Meadows PSPs must be finalised in the next 12 months, and that preparation of Clyde South PSP is expedited to ensure delivery by 2028.”
Linda Allison, chief executive officer of UDIA Victoria, a peak body for Victoria’s urban development industry, said there’s quite a scarcity of greenfield land supply in the South East.
“It’s a very popular part of Melbourne. There’s not a lot of supply left, and so we would like to see the government make sure that there is funding for key infrastructure like overpasses, so that that land can be unlocked,” she said.
“Otherwise, affordability is really going to be difficult in the South East because if there’s a shortage of land, then the prices are only going to go up.”
Ms Allison said some remaining PSPs were “quite complex”, which might be one of the reasons that the approval had slowed down over the years.
Other common challenges included drainage and water, cultural heritage, and essential infrastructure.
“The third element is really about infrastructure, what the government is prepared to invest upfront in terms of infrastructure to make those PSPs actually work,” Ms Allison said.
“We’ve seen a strong preference by the government, and it’s in the VPA’s publications, particularly the 10-year greenfield plan, that they’re not wanting to roll out PSPs that have large infrastructure requirements by the State.
“That’s particularly frustrating for my members in the industry in the sense that we’re trying to get housing on the ground, and sometimes it’s a road duplication or an overpass or a piece of infrastructure of that nature that is holding up the delivery of those new houses.”
Last year, the State Government released its 10-year plan for Melbourne’s greenfield, a framework for industry to plan for 180,000 homes across the newest suburbs under 27 new PSPs, including the aforementioned four in the City of Casey.
According to the State Government, the 27 greenfield plans will be developed and sequenced over three-time horizons. The horizons provide a program of work to deliver the PSP over the next 10 years, balancing the delivery of residential and employment areas as well as infrastructure capacity.
Target completion for PSPs is 3-4 years from commencement, with a goal to reduce this by about a third.
The use of new planning tools and delivery pathways will be explored as appropriate to reduce timeframes further.
The State Government shared that they work closely with industry to identify opportunities to reduce plan preparation times and ensure that the right issues are being considered at the right time.
Dr Marcus Spiller from SGS Economics and Planning said there is no point in establishing new PSPs if the funding is not available to support the extension of essential infrastructure into these areas.
Dr Spiller’s view has been widely shared in the Clyde and its surrounding communities, as residents have been calling for the extension of the Cranbourne Metro Train Line to Clyde for a long time.
Dr Spiller noted that Melbourne’s sprawl had reached the stage where it could be compromising the State’s economic productivity.
“Residents moving to a new outer suburban area in the South East growth corridor in 1996 (Lynbrook) could at that time reach almost a quarter of Melbourne’s entire pool of jobs within a 30-minute drive,” he pointed out.
“People moving into Pakenham East will only be able to reach 5 per cent of the metropolitan area’s jobs.
“This means that some people will be underemployed.
“There is clear evidence that a significant proportion of workers moving into the growth areas can’t find or get to jobs that match their qualifications. This acts as a drag on productivity.”
Ms Allison said the approval stall was a disappointing result for the industry she advocated for.
“We, as an industry, would want to see a strong and steady pipeline of land, ready to be zoned,” she said.
“So many of our members are either looking to develop or have acquired land in these future PSPs.
“And so, obviously, they’re looking for certainty about when the PSPs are going to be approved because that’s when they are able to then put in planning applications for master planned communities and so on.”
When inquired about the reasons why approvals had slowed down over the years, a DTP spokesperson said: “Last year we announced our 10-year greenfield plan, Victoria’s longest ever pipeline of new land for new homes and backyards that are great for big, growing families.
“This includes recently establishing a new dedicated concierge service for greenfield subdivisions to assist councils and industry in unlocking constrained and underutilised zoned land, by identifying and addressing issues preventing development.”
Croskell (Employment) PSP is expected to be completed by this year: vpa.vic.gov.au/project/croskell/
VPA is reviewing public submissions on the Casey Fields South (Employment) and Devon Meadows: vpa.vic.gov.au/project/casey-fields-south-devon-meadows/
