On Sunday, Melbourne Planning Minister, Richard Wynne, was all over the media trumpeting a new suburb in Melbourne named Macaulay that would supposedly ease Melbourne’s housing affordability crisis. From the Herald-Sun:
THOUSANDS of new homes will be built near Melbourne’s CBD as the Andrews Government prepares to battle housing affordability by unlocking the new suburb of Macaulay.
Planning Minister Richard Wynne will today move to rezone industrial land northwest of the city with 10,000 residents expected to move in by 2051.
The new housing hotspot will be filled with medium-size high-rises and is expected to be popular with developers.
Resident’s can also expect top notch transport with the new Arden Station to be built nearby as part of the Metro Rail Tunnel.
Property Council executive director Sally Capp said the news was “absolutely brilliant” and urged a range of dwellings to be built in the area.
“This are is so well placed to develop with jobs at the core,” she said.
“Supply is absolutely part of the equation with the population growth and we have the opportunity to do density well with variety of dwelling types”.
Mr Wynne will announce the changes to the Melbourne Planning Scheme today and has pledged developments are range between nine and 12 storeys.
“This is proper planning at play,’’ Mr Wynne said.
“We’re building a flagship new community, protecting local character, making homes more affordable and giving more Victorians a chance to work close to where they live…
So, “10,000 residents [are] expected to move in by 2051”. Are they serious? Melbourne’s population grew by a monstrous 126,000 people in 2016:
And under the State Government’s own forecasts, which surely will be revised upwards given the latest Census, Melbourne’s population is projected to grow by 97,000 people annually for the next 35 years:
So this new suburb will eventually provide homes for roughly one month’s worth of current population growth.
I hope the Victorian Government is planning to release eight new suburbs like this each and every year ad infinitum (assuming densificaton as well), because that’s what will be required to outrun the population ponzi choking the state.
