About Amendment C230mbek

In the Brunswick Activity Centre, new developments are focusing on apartments and not providing enough space for new businesses. The focus of Merri-bek Planning Scheme Amendment C230mbek is on land use; encouraging business investment and jobs, to ensure the vibrancy of the area does not decline.

At present there are 10 different zone schedules used in the Brunswick Activity Centre to encourage industrial, commercial and residential uses. There are 18 different ways of saying new buildings in the Activity Centre should be between 3 and 7 storeys in height. How buildings should be designed is contained in 14 different built form overlays.

Amendment C230mbek proposes to apply an Activity Centre Zone to the Brunswick Activity Centre. The Activity Centre Zone is designed to increase the opportunities for employment in the area and to simplify and improve the current controls that are made up of a mixture of zones and overlays affecting properties in multiple combinations.

The amendment replaces existing zones and built form overlays within the Brunswick Activity Centre with an Activity Centre Zone. An Activity Centre Zone puts guidance about land use and built form together in one provision to give more clarity. The Activity Centre Zone is the preferred tool to guide and facilitate the use and development of land in activity centres.

What does Amendment C230mbek do?

The amendment applies the Activity Centre Zone to the Brunswick Activity Centre, applies the Environmental Audit Overlay to potentially contaminated land and makes consequential changes.

The Amendment makes the following changes to the Merri-bek Planning Scheme:

• Updates the Municipal Planning Strategy Strategic Framework plans and making corresponding minor changes to the Planning Policy Framework.
• Rezones land within the Brunswick Activity Centre to Activity Centre Zone.
• Rezones 230A Albert Street from Neighbourhood Residential Zone to Public Park and Recreation Zone.
• Deletes General Residential Zone Schedules 3 and 4.
• Amends the Schedule to the Public Use Zone to delete the former Brunswick Secondary College.
• Deletes Design and Development Overlays 4, 10, 11, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 29.
• Deletes Incorporated Plan Overlay 3.
• Deletes Development Plan Overlay 1, 4 and 9.
• Amends Development Plan Overlay 11.
• Applies Parking Overlay 1 to align with the Brunswick Activity Centre Zone.
• Deletes Parking Overlay 1 from land within the Brunswick Activity Centre in a Public Park and Recreation Zone.
• Applies the Environmental Audit Overlay to land which is being rezoned from an industrial zone to a zone which allows land to be used for a sensitive use and has been identified as being potentially contaminated in a preliminary risk screen assessment by an environmental auditor.
• Updates Clause 72.03 Maps comprising part of the scheme.
• Updates Clause 72.04 Incorporated documents.
• Updates Clause 74.01 Application of zones and overlays.

Key documents

Merri-bek Planning Scheme Amendment C230mbek

Vibrant Brunswick Draft Brunswick Activity Centre Structure Plan

A Job in Moreland 2021 Final

Moreland Affordable Housing Planning Provision 2020 Final

Environmental Audit Overlay Preliminary Risk Screen Assessment SKM Report Final

Environmental Audit Overlay Preliminary Risk Screen Assessment Golder Report Final

Planning Enforcement Noise Complaints Report 2018-2022

Vibrant Brunswick Phase 1 and 2 Engagement Report Final

Vibrant Brunswick Phase 3 Engagement Report Final

Have your say on C230mbek

Following receipt of authorisation from the Minister for Planning the Amendment will be placed on statutory exhibition. Subject to the timing of the Minister’s authorisation of the Amendment, it is anticipated that exhibition will occur in early 2025.

Find out more

If you would like to find out more about Amendment C230mbek, please contact Strategic Planning by emailing strategicplanning@merri-bek.vic.gov.au or on 9240 1111

Privacy

Please be aware that we collect information from organisations and individuals during the planning scheme amendment process through submissions made to an Amendment. Submissions may be handwritten, electronic (both written and audio-visual), and often contain images, maps, and plans. Submissions frequently contain personal information which at times may be sensitive for commercial, health, or other reasons.

Natural justice and transparency are important parts of the Planning Scheme Amendment process. Council must make all submissions to an Amendment available for any person to inspect at its offices for a period of two months after the Amendment is finalised. This is a requirement of the Planning and Environment Act 1987. This includes all personal information such as names, address details, phone numbers email addresses. Your submission may also be emailed or posted to interested parties during the Planning Scheme amendment process.

We use submissions when assessing the Amendment and summaries of your submission are included in any Council report that considers the Amendment following the close of the exhibition. Your submission will also be used and disclosed in the public process of a Panel Hearing if one is required. Any submission forwarded to Planning Panels Victoria will be managed in accordance with their privacy policy.

Publication of Submissions on our website

We will make all submissions available to view online on its website during the Planning Scheme Amendment process. All submissions made available online will be redacted to remove personal names, telephone, and address details. Submissions will be removed from the website once the Amendment is finalised.

Use of your personal information

In accordance with the 'Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 (VIC)' and 'Health Records Act 2001 (VIC)' the personal information submitted by you is being collected by Merri-bek City Council for the submission process and it will not be disclosed to any other external party without your consent, except as a requirement of the 'Planning and Environment Act 1987 (VIC)'. If we provide a copy of your submission to another person, we will provide a disclaimer that it is made available for the purpose of the planning scheme amendment process as set out in the Planning and Environment Act 1987 and that the information must not be used for any other purpose or distributed to another party or published online.

If you do not provide your name and address Council will not be able to consider your submission.

You can gain access to your personal information you have provided to Merri-bek City Council and if you wish to alter it, please contact Council’s Privacy Officer via telephone on 9240 1111 or e-mail at Privacyofficer@merri-bek.vic.gov.au

You can find more information regarding privacy on our Privacy page.