Infrastructure Victoria has released the findings of our community engagement undertaken late last year where we asked residents from three established Melbourne suburbs: ‘what makes an area a great place?’
Residents from Footscray, Camberwell and Heidelberg were invited to share their views to help inform our understanding of density done well. These areas already have mixed levels of density and were selected for their proximity to the city and public transport.
Stage one included two deliberative workshops for each area, with a mix of randomly selected and self-selected participants to ensure a range of views were represented.
All participants were then invited to attend a half-day workshop to further refine and develop collective principles when striving for density done well.
The findings reveal that across these three suburbs, residents are willing to embrace greater urban density if the area has good access to public transport, quality urban design, plenty of green open space, and walking and cycling options. Melburnians of all ages want to live in homes that range from houses, townhouses and apartments, which can be possible if density is done well.
A range of housing options, accessibility, inclusion and safety for all were also named as necessary to supporting healthy, thriving communities in higher-density, urban areas.
The research is an important input into our work as we update the 30-year infrastructure strategy.
Updating the strategy ensures our advice on Victoria’s infrastructure needs and priorities remains current, reflects changes in policy settings and responds to emerging challenges and shifts in community views.
All Victorians will be invited to provide feedback on the updated draft 30-year strategy later this year, as part of a formal consultation period with the community and stakeholders.
Read the report here.
About the strategy
We developed Victoria’s first ever 30-year infrastructure strategy in 2016. This statewide, evidence-based strategy covers all types of infrastructure and was developed in consultation with stakeholders and the community.
An update of the strategy is underway and will be released in 2021. We will publish a draft strategy in 2020 for an eight week period of formal consultation with the community and stakeholders.
Updating the strategy is important to ensure our advice on Victoria’s infrastructure needs and priorities remains current, reflects changes in policy settings and responds to emerging challenges.
To set the scene, Infrastructure Victoria published Growing Victoria’s Potential in April 2019 which examines the challenges and opportunities of Victoria’s population growth. Underpinning the paper is a package of research. This includes an examination of the cost of infrastructure provision in different development settings and regional and metropolitan profiles which outline the unique strengths and challenges in different parts of Victoria.
View our Resources page to read our latest reports or listen to our CEO Michel Masson discussing the update of the 30-year infrastructure strategy.
Learn more about on the 2016 30-year infrastructure strategy here.
