1. Small focus group discussions

A series of discussions will be held over a two-week period commencing Monday 8 August until Sunday 21 August 2022, in Docklands, by invitation.

2. The Summit

Half-day event held on 2 September 2022, in Docklands, by invitation.

The City of Melbourne will be extending invites to key stakeholders, including:

• Major developers
• Major businesses/employers
• Victorian Government
• Representative Groups.

Expressions of interest are open for the following groups to attend:

• Residents
• Small businesses.

The City of Melbourne will be undertaking a series of small focus group discussions in Docklands, which will inform the agenda and workshops for the Summit.

These session aim to:

• Provide a platform for people to speak freely in a comfortable and safe environment;
• Provide the City of Melbourne with a sense-check against what it has already heard from the Docklands community in previous engagement;
• Help the City of Melbourne in the design of workshops held at the Summit; and
• Provide insights on potential short, medium and longer-term solutions to be presented at the upcoming Docklands Summit.

The half-day Summit will focus on exploring solutions and actions to deliver a positive and sustainable future for Docklands.

The Summit will feature:

• An introduction, including a brief history of engagement with the Docklands community;
• A summary of what was heard in the small focus group discussions held at Docklands prior to the Summit;
• A presentation on potential ideas and possibilities from key stakeholders in Docklands;
• A workshop where potential solutions are explored and prioritised; and
• Agreement on delivery outcomes from the Summit.

Docklands is one of Australia’s largest urban renewal projects, located on the doorstep of central Melbourne and historic Victoria Harbour waterfront. The renewal of the 190 hectare precinct which began in 1991, was forecast to be completed by 2025, and is currently two-thirds constructed.

Docklands is one of the precincts hit hardest by COVID-19 in Australia, largely attributed by an absence of office workers, international students and visitors.

A November 2021 audit indicated that Docklands had the highest rate of shop front vacancies and closures in Melbourne (at 42 per cent) compared to 19 per cent vacancies within Melbourne CBD.

As of 22 February 2022, New Quay pedestrian activity was down 21.2 per cent when compared to the same day in 2021. While this is an improvement when compared to 42 per cent in 2019, the low pedestrian activity has compounded the challenge of activation and development in Docklands.

There is an immediate need to build momentum and create sustainable change within Docklands. The Docklands Summit will inform the future direction and outlook for Docklands in a post-COVID environment.

In 2021, we began working with a Neighbourhood Model featuring a Neighbourhood Planning Framework focussing on listening to the voices of community and using these insights to help plan services, activities and investments.

Through community consultations held earlier this year, we have been able to identify 17 Neighbourhood Priorities for Docklands, with further consultation on these priorities happening in August and September this year.

The City of Melbourne recognises that Docklands is unique, with a number of key stakeholders invested in the future of the neighbourhood. The Summit provides an opportunity to bring together these stakeholders to workshop solutions and actions to collectively deliver, that align with the Neighbourhood Priorities.

The City of Melbourne will continue to engage with the community on the outcomes of the Summit through the Docklands Neighbourhood Planning Framework.

Follow Participate Docklands to stay up to date on everything related to Docklands and the outcomes of the Summit.