Last month, the Planning Minister announced changes to the existing Urban Growth Boundary, incorporating areas referred to as ‘logical inclusions’ to future Metropolitan Melbourne. The inclusions saw almost 6000 ha of current farmland and green wedge land identified for future residential development. This follows the 43 000 ha included in 2010.
The changes to the Urban Growth Boundary will affect the municipalities of Cardinia, Casey, Hume, Melton, Mitchell, Whittlesea and Wyndham, with amendments to their planning schemes to incorporate the new boundaries being necessary. There were also concerns raised by some of the affected Council’s on the viability of farmland on the outskirts of the city.
The changes have been met with some cynicism within planning circles questioning whether the additions to the Urban Growth Boundary were warranted, and whether they exceeded the original brief to address only ‘logical inclusions’, parcels of land inexplicably excluded in the 2010 boundary adjustment. It will be interesting to see when further future changes to Melbourne’s elastic urban growth boundary occur.