Merri-bek City Council is planning to redevelop its land holdings in central Coburg to transform the area into a vibrant economic, retail and cultural hub.

The draft concept for Coburg is our plan for this redevelopment.

It's not a planning scheme amendment, a planning permit application, or a masterplan. It’s an outline of our vision for the future of the sites, for the community to provide feedback on.

This has been a long-standing ambition building on extensive community consultation over the last 15 years.

Coburg is ready for renewal. Major projects like the completed level crossing removal and the upcoming Coburg Health Hub mean there is strong momentum and community support for positive change.

Parts of the area need refreshing. Poor quality public realm, lack of green space, and the dominance of ground level car parking make central Coburg less accessible and attractive for visitors, residents, and workers.

There is a need for more housing across Melbourne. We have an opportunity to do something about it.

Now is the time for us to take the next steps to maximise central Coburg’s potential as a cultural, economic and retail hub in Melbourne’s inner-north.

At present, the framework is financially feasible. Any additional ideas or features may require trade-offs to keep it feasible.

We’re now inviting the community to share feedback. We are asking the community to consider how best to balance community aspirations while keeping the project financially feasible.

Council will generally be expected to fund much of public realm and streetscape works. Council is already funding the library and piazza. Funding sources for these investments will include Council’s Open Space Reserve, and may include developer contributions, some kind of revenue from the development, and funds from Council’s infrastructure reserve.

Detailed costs and funding will be determined by the delivery method. That’s for later. Right now we are testing the draft concept with the community.

If the project proceeds, we anticipate that any potential profit Council makes from the development would be reinvested into delivering more community benefits such as streetscape upgrades, new parks, parking, community spaces and social and affordable housing.

This isn’t the first time Council has sought to revitalise central Coburg, but we’ve learned a lot from past attempts. The Coburg health and community services precinct is progressing, and Council has committed to developing a new library and piazza in the heart of central Coburg to act as a catalyst for change.

The concept for Coburg builds on these foundations, incorporating what we heard through The Coburg Conversation community engagement in 2023 to reflect community aspirations. It aims to find the right balance between community expectations, Council priorities and market realities, creating a clear and achievable plan with strong community support and real momentum behind it.

Most proposed buildings are between seven and 12 storeys, with some three-storey townhouses near City Oval and one taller 18-storey building close to Coburg Station.

The tallest building is comparable to other recent development in the area, such as the Adina Hotel in Pentridge (18-19 storeys) and the building under construction at 519 Sydney Road (16 storeys).

Buildings have been designed to minimise overshadowing of key streets, current and future open spaces, and to minimise wind effects.

The proposed heights aim to strike a balance between different needs. Taller buildings help deliver more market housing, which in turn funds community benefits such as better streets, new parks, and more social and affordable housing. Heights are also managed to minimise overshadowing and wind impacts, keeping central Coburg a comfortable place to spend time. Providing sufficient car parking for larger buildings is another key consideration, particularly given the high cost of basement parking due to Coburg’s ground conditions.

Throughout the design process, overshadowing has been modelled to understand the impacts at different times throughout the year.

Early wind modelling has been undertaken on the concept. It indicates that the concept will not lead to wind tunnels or negative wind impacts. The buildings shown in the concept for Coburg are not final designs, and detailed designs for each building will be developed as the project progresses. As each building is developed in more detail, further wind modelling will be undertaken to help keep outdoor areas comfortable for everyone.

Most of the proposed building heights are within or close to being within the current discretionary height limits in the Merri-bek Planning Scheme.

The 18-storey building is slightly taller than the current limit, but is similar to other recent developments in the area. The State Government is expected to update the planning controls soon as part of its Activity Centres Program, and the 18-storey building would comply with the new planning controls.

The concept for Coburg builds on these foundations, incorporating what we heard through The Coburg Conversation community engagement in 2023 to reflect community aspirations. It aims to find the right balance between community expectations, Council priorities and market realities, creating a clear and achievable plan with strong community support and real momentum behind it.

The State Government is introducing reforms to deliver its Housing Statement and increase the number of homes near public transport, jobs, and essential services. These reforms include changes to 60 Activity Centres along key public transport lines, including Brunswick and Coburg Activity Centres. The government has recently released height and boundary maps for community consultation, with new built form planning controls expected in early 2026.

The concept for central Coburg has been developed independently by Council but remains broadly aligned with the objectives of the State Government-led Activity Centres Program to increase housing in well-services locations. Importantly, Council’s concept reflects a balance of housing with economic and open space uses in the precinct – delivering more local jobs and economic uplift alongside housing growth.

The buildings shown in the concept for Coburg are indicative building envelopes and not actual building designs. Concept (and then detailed) designs for each building will be developed if the project progresses. Great architectural design of public and private infrastructure will be a key feature of this work.

An architectural concept design for the first stage – the library and piazza – will be released for community consultation in early 2026.

The concept for Coburg is a draft, and we are seeking community feedback before finalising it.

Many features including building heights could change, but any adjustments involve trade-offs to remain feasible. Lowering heights would reduce the number of homes that can be sold at market rates, which in turn would limit funding for community benefits like improved streets, new parks, community spaces, and social and affordable housing.

Conversely, increasing heights would need careful consideration to manage overshadowing and wind impacts and to ensure there is sufficient car parking for the additional homes.

Similar trade-offs exist for changing the levels of any of the features of the concept – economic spaces, open space, car parking, housing, transport connections, and social and affordable housing. Council is keen for the community’s feedback on these trade offs, to understand if we have the balance right.

Council is aiming for 23-30% of all homes to be social and affordable housing, with at least 90 social housing dwellings.

There is a high demand for social and affordable housing in the Coburg area, which is not being met by what is currently available. Council’s land holdings in central Coburg are an opportunity to deliver this much needed housing, providing access to safe and secure housing to those in need.

If the project proceeds, Council would be contributing around a third of the projected social housing gap in Coburg over the next 15 years. Council looks to other parties to meet the remaining gap, particularly the State government.

Central Coburg currently has almost 1,600 off-street public car parking spaces, of which over 1,000 are owned by Council. There are also approximately 100 on-street spaces. All this current parking is at ground level – and it occupies nearly one-third of the developable land in central Coburg.

The concept for Coburg proposes reconfiguring how public car parking is provided to provide space for new housing, businesses and green space.

900 car parks are proposed to be consolidated into three car parking locations: two multi-deck car parks on Louisa and Russell streets and above a new supermarket on Waterfield Street. Every part of the precinct will be able to be reached within a two minute walk from the carparks. Some on street car parking will remain, prioritised for priority users such as people with disabilities and deliveries.

We know that parking is important.

The draft concept for Coburg provides the approximately 900 public car parking spaces needed, and over 150 additional spaces that could be used to meet demand generated by new commercial uses and/or leased to apartments requiring additional car parking.

Parking sensor analysis shows that about 80 per cent of current spaces (just under 900 spaces) are needed to meet the peak periods of parking demand for the centre. The methodology we have used is consistent with the principles used to design car parking provision in Melbourne’s major shopping centres.

Managing car parking in the multi-deck car parks and elsewhere around the centre will be an important part of future planning.

Further work will identify where different parking types should be located. For example, we will look to prioritise accessible, loading, and short-stay spaces in convenient areas, with long-stay parking directed to the upper levels of the multi-deck. Real-time parking displays could show where spaces are available. Parking management will be reviewed at the time of development, recognising that technology, travel patterns, and community needs may change over the next 5–10 years.

No decision has been made on the details of how the parking will work.

Parking management, including paid parking, will be reviewed at the time of development, recognising that technology, travel patterns, and community needs may change over the next 5–10 years.

Options such as paid long-term parking within the centre and permit parking in nearby residential streets may be considered, to protect neighbourhood amenity and contain residential car parking associated with new housing developments to the parking provisioned within those housing developments.

Currently, each local business can apply for up to two business parking permits, if they do not have more than two off-street parking spaces already. Permits can be transferred between cars. There are also “business zone” bays.

We are exploring options to incorporate permit-based business parking within the multi-decks. No decisions about how this will work have been made yet, but we are committed to providing adequate parking for local business owners and staff.

Due to rocky ground conditions, excavating to create entirely underground car parking would be very expensive. The benefits of underground car parking were weighed against the potential costs, and a balance between underground car parking and above ground parking has been proposed that maintains the financial viability of the project as well as meeting the parking needs of residents, workers and visitors in the most efficient way.

The concept for Coburg has sought to maintain loading access for existing business and future on-street loading zones will be available for delivery drivers and traders. Further details on the location of loading zones will be decided on in future stages.

Accessibility and safety have been key considerations throughout the development of the plan.

A pedestrian-centred precinct with new streets, clear wayfinding and signage, places to sit and rest, and short distances from carparks to destinations will make the precinct easy to navigate and accessible for all community members. New retail and passive surveillance from surrounding buildings will make the streets more active in the evenings and make the area feel safer.

A key consideration of this design is how people might move through central Coburg if they have arrived by public transport, walked, cycled, or parked in one of the multi-decks at the perimeter of the precinct. For this reason, an improved public realm has been prioritised, so that visitors and locals can feel safe and welcome as they move around central Coburg.

Traffic modelling has been undertaken to ensure that the surrounding area can cope with any increases in traffic movements. Measures to mitigate more traffic such as changes to the design of intersections will be worked out in further detail in later stages.

There will be some parking provided for new residents. If the project proceeds, details will be worked through to ensure developments meet the car parking requirements of the Planning Scheme and of new residents moving into the developments.

Victoria Street Mall is a much-loved meeting place in central Coburg, and preserving its character is an important part of this plan.

The existing pedestrian mall will be enhanced by a new shared zone connecting it to Waterfield Street.

The surrounding development will include ground-floor retail spaces with apartments above, bringing more activity and “eyes on the street” to create a safer, more vibrant, and welcoming space for the community.

We propose improvements to Victoria Street Mall in stage 2.

Upgrades to Sydney Road and Bell Street aren’t proposed as part of this project. We know that traders and the community would like to see improvements to these streets to make them safer and more accessible and pleasant to visit.

Sydney Road and Bell Street are managed by the State Government, which looks after the parts of the road where cars drive and park. Council manages the footpaths but can’t make major changes to the road.

We know that they are part of the precinct and welcome community feedback on the role these significant roads might play in the future precinct.

Where possible, existing trees will be retained. In particular, the new park on the Russell Street site has been located to retain as many high value trees as possible. There will also be approximately 200 additional trees planted.

Initial testing has been carried out to check for any site contamination, and further assessment will likely take place before development begins. The results so far show nothing out of the ordinary for an established urban area. At this stage Council believes any issues identified can be safely managed as part of the normal development process.

The concept would bring major economic benefits to central Coburg, supporting more local jobs, business activity, and spending in the area.

Currently, local spending in central Coburg is relatively low compared with similar activity centres, with many residents shopping elsewhere.

Coburg residents spend a total almost $1b a year, of which almost 90% or almost $860million is spent either online or outside of Coburg. Currently Coburg residents spend 11% locally, it’s expected that local residents would spend an additional 10% locally.

This plan aims to change that by increasing the number of people living, working, and spending locally.

Within Coburg:

• During construction there will be an estimated $700 million in additional economic activity in Merri-bek and 265 local construction jobs each year.
• After construction the sites will accommodate at least 300-350 jobs in the retail, businesses and commercial spaces. The new local population (of around 2,000 people) will also generate an additional 50 local jobs.
• In addition, a more vibrant central Coburg will capture more (over 20% rather than 11%) of the almost $1b in local spending which Coburg people are currently spending outside of Coburg.

For Victoria:

• Businesses and households are expected to benefit from $1.47 billion of increased demand for goods and services triggered during construction by the development concept.
• This project will deliver almost $200 million in additional income to businesses annually after construction.
• The value added to Victoria through the increased production of goods and services is approx $670m during construction and would be $96.4m annually after construction.

We want a thriving and diverse retail and businesses offering. We want to keep what’s already in place with Coburg’s many well loved businesses – and we also want to expand to add more.

Future businesses in the area are still undetermined, but other than a new supermarket, the new retail spaces are predominantly small-scale tenancies along key pedestrian routes. These smaller tenancies will encourage a diverse range of businesses, including both retail and commercial uses. This will build and expand on what people love about Coburg currently and increasing the reasons to shop or seek other services in Coburg.

Council has already committed to delivery of the new library and piazza – Stage 1. Construction is planned to start in 2028, with the new facilities expected to open in 2029.

Timelines for the remaining stages of the draft concept for Coburg are yet to be confirmed.

A possible Stage 2 would include streetscape upgrades around the new library and piazza to improve access and support the success of these new community spaces, as well as two potential new residential with some ground floor retail. This is intended to follow as soon as possible after their completion.

A project of this scale isn’t delivered all at once. Council is conscious of a systematic approach to delivery that manages the disruption to existing and new businesses as the works progress. This means it could take 10-15 years to complete the entire concept.

Some sites can only be developed once existing uses are relocated, such as the existing library site. Council also needs to balance the staged relocation of car parking to ensure replacement parking is available as development progresses.

Public realm upgrades are also staged to make sure they align with the development of sites. This means upgraded streets will progressively come online as each stage is completed.

Decisions about delivery models and partnerships, including whether land will be sold, leased, or kept will not be made until after the concept is finalised.

We know construction can be disruptive, and we’ll work hard to minimise impacts wherever possible. The specific approach will depend on each site and stage, and will be refined closer to the start of construction.

The project has been planned to maintain parking access and traffic movements as much as possible during construction. As existing parking areas are affected, new spaces will be provided to replace them. Public realm upgrades – including new open spaces, pedestrian access, and transport upgrades – will also be staged in line with this.

We’ll work closely with nearby traders to support continued trade, minimise disruption and ensure customers can continue to access local businesses and to keep visiting the area.