The Victorian Legislative Council Legal and Social Issues Committee is set to meet with local councils, homelessness organisations, residents and their representatives next week as part of its inquiry into the redevelopment of Melbourne’s public housing towers.
The Committee is inquiring into the Victorian Government’s 2023 decision to demolish and redevelop 44 high-rise public housing buildings in Melbourne.
The Committee will meet in the community room at the public housing tower at 2 Simmons Street, South Yarra on Tuesday 1 July from 10 am.
The hearing will be open to the public and broadcast live on the Committee’s website.
The inquiry will hear from Port Phillip City Council, Southern Homelessness Services Network, Port Phillip and Stonnington Zero, Southside Justice, Better Health Network and the South Yarra Public Tenants Association, as well as from residents of the South Yarra towers.
The full schedule of witnesses is available on the Committee’s website.
The Committee will explore the rationale and cost of demolition versus alternatives such as refurbishment, the impact on public housing residents, and the relocation of residents.
It will also assess the adequacy of consultations with residents, stakeholders, and government entities, and evaluate the proposed financial and legal models. The Committee will review building standards, the integration of different housing models, and the impact of the plan on bedroom availability, public and community housing numbers, the Victorian Housing Register, and on homelessness.
Go to the Committee’s website for the full terms of reference, to sign up to email alerts or to download any of the more than 800 submissions to the inquiry.
The Committee expects to table its report by December 2025.
