ABOUT THE REPORTS . . . .
WHAT HAPPENS NOW : THE ‘CENTRE’ OF TARNEIT
The area around Tarneit railway station - a walkable major activity centre? This new major activity centre, while very much a work-in-progress, clearly demonstrates an absence of the fundamentals of good planning, fundamentals that underpin similar developments in the advanced economies of the world.
There is a crisis in growth area planning in Victoria, and a need for radical changes in the way the State government and the development industry deliver new greenfield communities.
This was the message of Charter 29’s first report, “Growing Pains: The Crisis in Growth Area Planning”, released in September 2020.
In July 2021 Charter 29 released its second report, “Planning for Better Neighbourhoods”, which offers solutions to this crisis in five action plans, each of which is backed up by a detailed working paper. The central premise of the report is that many of the government’s own growth area planning policies, of which there are a great many, are being ignored or overridden.
Now, in June 2022 Charter 29 is releasing “Alternative Precinct Structure Planning Guidelines: How to Create Sustainable Communities in Victoria’s Growth Areas” This report sets out Charter 29’s alternative approach, compared to equivalent content in the Victorian Planning Authority’s (VPA) Precinct Structure Planning Guidelines of October 2021. Section 2.0 of the report identifies the key reforms that should be enacted by Victoria’s new planning minister, when she/he takes office after November’s state election.
WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN: A SUSTAINABLY PLANNED TOWN CENTRE
This is how the planning of a new major activity centre should be approached. Whether or not an activity centre is proposed next to a railway station (most aren’t), it should be sited at the most accessible location in a suburb or neighbourhood, and be designed to be easily accessed on foot, by bike and using public transport, as well as by car. Higher density dwellings are located in and around the centre, which accommodates a wide variety of uses, not just retail.