A virtual panel hearing for Amendment C278: Sunlight to parks was held by video conference from Tuesday 9 March 2021 to 30 March 2021.

The Panel delivered its report in June 2021 recommending adoption of the Amendment with some site specific changes and minor drafting changes. The Amendment represents a fundamental shift in the policy basis for overshadowing controls in the Melbourne Planning Scheme.

Key changes are:

• a shift from the currently largely equinox based controls outside the Central City to winter solstice based controls
• an expansion of the hours of protection (most controls currently provide protection between 11am and 2pm, whereas the Amendment proposes expanding the hours of protection to 10am to 3pm)
• a shift from largely discretionary controls to mandatory controls
• a shift from the current ‘hierarchical’ approach, whereby some parks are offered higher protection than others, to a ‘flat’ approach where all parks are treated equally regardless of their size and function.

See the documents from the Panel Hearing on the Amendment overview page.