New ‘fringe’ plan for Melbourne
28 August 2015 by News Desk
A new government plan is to be unveiled to address the increasing development of outer suburbs in Melbourne, Australia.
The recent huge rise in residential construction around the city fringes has led to concerns that vital infrastructure like roads and rail transport, schools and health centres are not being built fast enough to support the growing population.
The state government, admitting that new infrastructure and community services for these suburbs has failed to keep pace with demand, is to publish its’ plan – called Managing Growth – this week, aiming to allay the concerns of residents and local businesses.
Outer suburbs of Melbourne have grown fast in recent years as the population of Melbourne has grown to 4.4 million people. Latest figures say the city will be home to 8 million by 2051, driven largely by overseas migration.
The fastest growing residential areas are on Melbourne’s outer fringe – Wyndham, Melton, Cardinia and Whittlesea. A pilot plan will be rolled out in City of Melton, which has grown by 6% over the past five years and is forecast to increase by over 60% in the next ten years with over 100,000 new houses being built.
The Managing Growth plan will seek to co-ordinate economic and social infrastructure including public transport, local roads and investment to provide jobs. It will also create a $50m Interface Growth Fund for community facilities. Plan Melbourne, created by the former Coalition government, is also being updated.
