The Stewart Street Reserve in Richmond that hosts a statue of Molly Meldrum and his dog Ziggy is set to be expanded after the council bought out adjoining land.
A Melbourne council is on a multimillion-dollar property buying spree as they wage war on the concrete jungle.
But they’re running out of funding after what they feel was a shortsighted state government decision that they’ve urged the Allan government to reconsider.
In the past four months the City of Yarra have splashed $4.9m buying land to turn into open space or expand parks in Collingwood and Richmond.
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The purchases included one confirmed this week on Wangaratta St that spans 1524sq m and is being acquired from VicTrack for $3.4m to expand the Stewart Street Reserve that is home to a bronze statue of Molly Meldrum and his dog Ziggy.
A 290sq m plot at the corner of Mater and Wellington streets was bought from the Salvation Army in the second half of last year for $1.5m.
Mayor Stephen Jolly said the spaces would be increasingly important as more high-rise homes were built in the urban municipality and they fought the effects of a “concrete jungle”.
Mr Jolly said while the latest purchase wasn’t “exactly the Edinburgh Gardens”, it would still be an important space for locals.
A Mater St, Collingwood, property the council purchased off of the Salvation Army last year.
“If you are living in a block of units, you might be living in the fanciest apartment in the world, but your dog still needs a piss and you have to put your life on the line as a pedestrian with a dog walking across Punt Rd,” he said.
While the council is eyeing additional purchases, mostly in Collingwood and Richmond, the mayor said the developer contribution fund that was collected essentially for this purpose was now beginning to run out as a result of the state government giving exemptions to developers in return for certain planning considerations.
Mr Jolly said without a reversal in the government’s position and fewer exemptions being granted, the council would lose the ability to bring much needed greenery for its residents to relax in outside of their homes.
Open parks around the MCG are separated from Richmond residents by busy Punt Rd. Picture: NewsWire/David Geraghty.
The council are also looking at closing small road segments to extend existing parks and acquired land, with local residents currently being consulted about the prospect of turning parts of Mater St, Collingwood, and Kent St, Richmond, into parks.
Urban Development Institute of Australia Victorian head of policy Jack Vaughan said if the state was serious about increasing density in Melbourne, more consideration needed to be given to infrastructure and amenities.
“Public open space is one of the most important components to improving the amenity of an area,” Ms Vaughan said.
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