Project update - May 2025

The State Government has commenced community engagement on the Heidelberg MAC

The State Government’s Activity Centres Program (ACP) has now commenced community engagement to prepare its preferred planning controls for the Heidelberg Major Activity Centre (Heidelberg MAC).

Here are some key points about the engagement:

• Phase 1 engagement is an opportunity for the community to share their thoughts on what they value most about their local area.
• Engagement will include:
  • An online survey
  • An online community session on Thursday 29 May 2025, 6.30-7.30pm
  • Community drop-in events held throughout May and June 2025.
• You can also put your hand up to join a Community Reference Group (CRG) in June – July 2025. The CRG will review community feedback from Phase 1 engagement and make recommendations to help the Activity Centres Program understand and consider community needs.
• A newsletter will be distributed in the coming weeks to homes and businesses in close proximity to the Heidelberg MAC.
• Phase 2 engagement is proposed for later this year and will seek feedback on the draft plans for the activity centre.

For more information on the engagement process and how to get involved, visit the project on the Engage Victoria website.

This Engagement is being conducted by the State Government’s Activity Centres Program. Any enquires should be made via Engage Victoria.

State Government’s Activity Centres Program

Whilst Council resolved on 10 February 2025 to adopt Amendment C172 and request that the Minister for Planning approves the Amendment, the Minister has since assumed responsibility for planning the Heidelberg MAC by selecting it as one of 60 activity centres included in the State Government’s Activity Centres Program. Through the Activity Centres Program, the government will prepare and apply its own preferred planning controls to these 60 activity centres, including Heidelberg, in support of its Housing Statement (September 2023).

At the Council meeting on 24 March 2025, Council considered an officer report that outlined a number of initiatives that have recently been introduced by the State Government in support of its Housing Statement, including adding Heidelberg MAC to the Activity Centres Program. To view the minutes and Council report, go to Council's website and refer to Item 6.1.

On 10 February 2025, Council adopted a revised version of Amendment C172. It was resolved that Council:

1. Notes the Planning Panels Victoria Report on Amendment C172 to the Banyule Planning Scheme dated 16 September 2024.
2. Adopts the revised version of the exhibited Amendment C172 to the Banyule Planning Scheme.
3. Adopts a revised version of the Heidelberg Structure Plan dated February 2025.
4. Requests that the Minister for Planning approves and gazettes the adopted Amendment.
5. Writes to all submitters to the Amendment to inform them of Council’s decision.
6. Advocate to the State Government for investment in infrastructure that supports Heidelberg’s increased density, specifically for:
   a) Increased investment for major upgrades to active transport including cycling and pedestrian infrastructure.
   b)Improved public transport infrastructure and service provision.
7. Notes that the new Development Contributions Plan and, Open Space Levy (review in progress) will seek to allocate funds towards open space and public realm renewal priorities as identified within the Heidelberg Structure Plan. This includes green infrastructure to improve the amenity and pedestrian experience.

To view the minutes from the 10 February Council Meeting, go to Council's website and refer to Item 6.1 in the minutes.

The adopted amendment includes most of the recommendations from an independent Planning Panel that considered submissions in July 2024. The key changes recommended by the Panel were that:

• Mandatory urban design provisions that were broadly proposed in the exhibited ACZ2 to be replaced with discretionary provisions, except for one exhibited application of a mandatory height limit in the retail core.
• Four of the exhibited maximum height limits proposed by the ACZ2 be increased by two storeys.

View the Planning Panel’s report.

Please note: While the amendment is adopted, it is not yet complete and has not changed the planning scheme.

Based on past experience, it is considered the Minister may make a decision on whether to approve and gazette the amendment by mid-2025.

The adopted Planning Scheme Amendment C172 proposes to implement the land use and urban design recommendations of the Heidelberg Structure Plan (February 2025) for the Heidelberg Major Activity Centre.

The amendment applies to:

• Land to be removed from the Heidelberg MAC, which includes certain land in proximity of Gotha Street, south of St Hellier Street (depicted as 'A' in the map below)
• Land to be retained within the Heidelberg MAC (depicted as 'B' in the map below).

Proposed changes include:

• To apply two new zones within the Heidelberg MAC, which are:
  • Schedule 2 to the Activity Centre Zone (ACZ2), which the amendment proposes to apply to much of the Heidelberg MAC, particularly its central corridor of commercial land located along Bell and Burgundy Streets and adjacent streets.
  • Schedule 5 to the General Residential Zone (GRZ5), which the amendment proposes to apply to a significant portion of the residential areas within the periphery of the MAC.
• To modify the content of the existing Residential Growth Zone (RGZ1).
• Implement urban design guidelines, that for example:
  • Set building height limits and front setbacks that support the preferred character for the centre, whilst still facilitating growth where appropriate.
  • Support the accessibility for the centre, particularly for pedestrians.
  • Protect and enhance the public realm, and prevent inappropriate overshadowing.
  • Provide a transition in development that is suitably sensitive to residential areas.

• Allow for land use to support the viability and vitality of the centre, to support further residential growth within much of the periphery of the MAC and in walking distance of shops and services.
• A modest change to the boundary of the Heidelberg MAC by removing "Area A" shown in the above map "Land affected by Amendment C172".

Proposed Building Height Limits

The Heidelberg Structure Plan proposes to apply a new suite of height limits for future development in the Heidelberg MAC. Click here to view the proposed height limits map, which is taken from page 31 of the adopted Structure Plan (February 2025).

For a significant portion of the centre, the proposed building height limits retain or only moderately vary the existing height limits. For example, it is proposed that an existing building height limit of 11 metres (3 storeys) be retained over much of the residential areas within the Heidelberg MAC.

Amendment C172 particularly proposes to implement the maximum building height limits recommended by the Heidelberg Structure Plan by applying the revised Schedule 1 to the Residential Growth Zone (RGZ1) and both the new Schedule 5 to the General Residential Zone (GRZ5) and the Schedule 2 to the Activity Centre Zone (ACZ2).

Please note that the Amendment C172 does not propose to rezone or apply maximum building height limits, recommended by the Heidelberg Structure Plan, for the existing corridor of Commercial 2 Zone (C2Z) land which abuts the west side of Upper Heidelberg Road between Thames Street and St Hellier Street. Additional strategic work is required regarding this land.

View the documents for adopted Amendment C172, in the adopted amended documents tab on this page.

The Heidelberg Structure Plan is a place-based strategic framework that will guide growth and coordinate Council investment and activity in the Heidelberg MAC over the next twenty years.

The Structure Plan builds upon the previous 2010 version and establishes the basis for the future application of an Activity Centre Zone (ACZ) in the Banyule Planning Scheme. Key elements of the plan include:

• a framework for the whole Heidelberg centre
• 6 precincts, each with its own vision, strategies and actions.
• objectives and strategies for ‘Activity and Land Use’, ‘Built form and Character’, ‘Access and Connection’ and ‘Places for People: Public Realm and Open Space’.

What we did

Following the consultation period in 2021 on the draft Heidelberg Structure Plan, we:

• Collated and analysed all your feedback and provided a summary report on the community engagement finds.
• Council considered all the feedback received prior to finalising the Plan at its meeting on 6 December 2021 and request that it be presented with a proposed planning scheme amendment to implement the Heidelberg Structure Plan.

Most recently, we: