Thousands of inner-city residents still don’t have access to adequate local parkland, as the competing interests of the council and state government continue to stall a proposed open space project years after it was introduced.
Seventeen plots of land have been earmarked by the City of Melbourne to form a new open space network in the Macaulay urban renewal precinct, which is in the traditionally industrial areas of North Melbourne and Kensington.
But there have been difficulties in acquiring and converting the space into parkland. While some land within the proposed network is already owned by the council, about 7500 square metres is privately owned. Another 9700 square metres is owned by the state government – which has hampered the project’s progression for years.
Kensington resident Emma Baker said there was an urgent need for more parkland in her area – particularly when it comes to large-scale recreational spaces. Matters have only been worsened by the rapid construction of high-rise apartment blocks in the precinct.
“We’ve been desperate for the park to come, and it doesn’t look like it’s going to happen at this time,” Baker said. “Areas like North Melbourne have the green … in the middle of the street. We’ve got nothing. It’s just dense housing.”
At a meeting on March 17, City of Melbourne councillors voted to support the introduction of a public acquisition overlay, which would mean the land is legally reserved for future public green space and could be compulsorily acquired if necessary.
Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece, Deputy Lord Mayor Roshena Campbell, and councillors Kevin Louey and Mark Scott, who are all members of “Team Nick”, declared a conflict of interest due to a campaign donation and did not vote on the resolution. A City of Melbourne spokesperson did not respond to a question about whether these councillors would be involved in future discussions regarding the public space overlay.
While Baker said the open place precinct proposed by the City of Melbourne was “better than nothing”, she believes that issues raised by the community are not being properly addressed at a state or council level.
“Kensington is a forgotten part of Melbourne … They’re very slow to do anything. We’ve got this really pretty creek along there. It’s just not utilised at all,” Baker said.
Final approval of the proposed overlay sits with the Department of Transport and Planning, which has had access to the plans since they were first endorsed by the council in 2019. Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny formed an advisory committee for the project in December, with hearings due to start on April 7.
‘It’s ridiculous that blockages in the state Labor government are preventing this area being turned into a park for residents’
Ellen Sandell, leader of the Victorian Greens and the local MP for the area
Ellen Sandell, leader of the Victorian Greens and the local MP for the area, said that it was “ludicrous” that it had taken so long to establish green space in the area.
“Thousands of apartments have gone up in Kensington, but the promised open space along the creek [is] still locked up behind chain-link fences and filled with industrial rubbish,” Sandell said.
“It’s ridiculous that blockages in the state Labor government are preventing this area being turned into a park for residents and for flood mitigation, when the solution should be simple.”
One contentious site on Stubbs Street is owned by VicTrack, the state government entity which manages railway land and infrastructure. This land falls under a registrar caveat that permanently reserves the space for railway purposes and prohibits a transfer of ownership.
A City of Melbourne report said VicTrack has “competing interests with the Macaulay Structure Plan”, and recommended that Reece request the state government remove the caveat.
A spokesperson from the Department of Transport and Planning said VicTrack was engaging in discussions with the council about opportunities to lease or purchase the impacted land.
“We’re working closely with the City of Melbourne to deliver more homes in well-connected areas like Macaulay, along with the open space communities need,” they said, adding that the advisory committee will report to Kilkenny by mid-2026 about the project.
Councillor David Griffiths, who holds the environment portfolio at the City of Melbourne, said the council was committed to providing open space for residents, and the construction of a park in Chelmsford Street, Kensington was about to commence.
“We are working with the state government to create more green space. Plans including land, the public acquisition overlay and funding requirements will be considered by a state government-appointed advisory committee in the coming weeks,” Griffiths said.
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