The City of Melbourne has recently placed Amendment C163 on Exhibition. This Amendment has the potential to provide developers with greater certainty about ‘what Council wants’ with respect to Student Housing, provides a clearer definition of what applications constitutes Student Housing and what doesn’t, and also clarifies how an application for Student Housing will be assessed by Council. This Amendment reflects the growing need for consistent guidelines for Student Housing, as well as acute student housing shortages and conflicts with siting these within residential contexts, and it is noted that Glen Eira and Stonnington City Councils have recently formulated similar guidelines.
Essentially, the Amendment recognises two themes in the kinds of applications historically lodged under the banner of ‘Student Housing’;
- Self contained apartment which are simply defined as ‘dwellings’ by the Melbourne Planning Scheme; and
- Share houses with common kitchens and or bathrooms, which are currently assessed as ‘residential buildings’ under the Planning Scheme.
Amendment C163 attempts to draw a distinction between those developments which are ‘disguised’ as student housing but are in reality better defined as residential apartments, social housing or temporary accommodation of other sorts. The Student Housing Policy will only apply to bona fide student housing, either purpose built or existing buildings modified to accommodate 10 or more students.
The Policy does not apply to informal student housing where students occupy ‘dwellings’ as defined within the planning scheme, or if the accommodation comprises a number of fully self-contained units that meet the definition of a dwelling.
The amendment will provide standards for bicycle, scooter and car parking, loading and unloading arrangements, and waste collection, and explicitly recommends;
- Standards for the design of shared common facilities;
- Standards for the amount of common indoor and outdoor space per student;
- The provision of a Management Plan that will support the pastoral care of students; and
- Minimum design standards so that student rooms meet their needs for privacy, amenity, space and functionality.
Critically, the Student Housing Policy will only operate in those zones where Accommodation is a Permitted use, and so the Amendment should not be interpreted as extending the boundaries of areas where student housing could be located, but it does provide clearer ‘goal posts’ for developers and designers to work towards, and consistency about how these applications will be assessed. Further, it highlights the issue of the ‘student housing’ banner being used for boarding houses and social housing, clarifying that these guidelines apply to bona fide Student Housing only, which should provide greater certainty to neighbours and Council when an application is made.
Of course, in addition to the provisions of Proposed Clause 22.24, the built form will still be assessed within a Residential or Mixed Zone under Clause 55 if the form is less than 4 storeys in height, or Clause 22.01 or Clause 22.17, depending on its location.
Permit applicant’s seeking to have their applications considered as bona fide ‘student accommodation’ facilities should be aware of Amendment C163. It is expected that other municipalities with high student populations will soon follow the City of Melbourne’s lead.
Full details of the amendment can be found at www.dpcd.vic.gov.au
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