As part of City of Melbourne's Open Space Strategy, there was a commitment to investigate the potential to expand the size of Miles and Dodds Street Park. The proposed plan was to create more local open space, improving its design and value to better cater to local recreational use and contribution to urban heat island effect mitigation.

In late 2023, Council invited community feedback on the proposal to expand Miles and Dodds Street Reserve, by discontinuing the east bound section of Miles Street and creating a larger green space for the community.

This first phase of engagement for the proposed expansion of Miles and Dodds Street Reserve ran from 6 November to 17 December 2023.

We collected feedback through:

• two in-person sessions in the park
• an online survey on Participate Melbourne (paper copies were also available during pop up sessions).

We also:

• distributed postcards to surrounding residents and businesses
• installed signs throughout the park with information about the proposal and a QR code linking to the Participate Melbourne survey.

To see a more in-depth breakdown of who we heard from, please see the full engagement summary report.

The engagement findings overall were supportive of the expansion project.

Of the 123 responses:

• 54 per cent supported the proposal
• 33 per cent did not support the proposal
• 11 per cent felt impartial or did not answer.

The feedback has been reviewed and summarised into the below themes.

Mixed views on greening in the area

We heard that participants are generally supportive of more greening in the neighbourhood and see the expansion of Miles and Dodds Street Reserve as a positive contribution to increasing green spaces for residents to enjoy. The benefits of increasing habitat and biodiversity for local wildlife was also frequently mentioned.

We also heard a positive response from many local families who live close by in residential apartments that do not have access to private open space in their properties.

Some respondents unsupportive of the proposal said the area has many parks within walking distance and is already well serviced with green space. Some respondents suggested improvements should be made to Sturt Street Reserve and Grant Street Reserve instead. Some participants said they have access to private open space and amenities within their complex, so they didn’t see a need for additional open space in the area.

Improve usability / access to local park

Participants told us they would visit the park more often if it was expanded and more accessible. Some participants said the space currently feels small and uninviting, and the proposed expansion would provide a new park for locals to enjoy.

Traffic

We heard support for changes to the road layout and parking as this will reduce traffic speeds and the likelihood and frequency of incidents at the intersection. Participants also acknowledged that the park expansion could encourage more local walking and cycling.

Some participants noted the proposed expansion may not address the existing traffic issues.

Local traffic speed, lack of signage, proximity of the park to the road are concerning to most participants who shared feedback about traffic. Multiple participants shared experiences of witnessing traffic incidents at the intersection of Miles and Dodds Street.

Parking

Some participants highlighted concerns about existing issues with the lack of parking in the area. These participants shared that they were not supportive of removing parking form the area because their guests struggle to find parking.

We also heard questions and concerns about:

• The size and amenity of the proposed expansion wouldn’t change the park’s limited usability.
• Potential increase in antisocial activity because of the park expansion.
• The cost of the proposed expansion.

Please see the Engagement Summary Report for a more in-depth breakdown of community feedback and findings.

Overall, most participants supported the proposal.

The outcome of this first phase of community engagement is to proceed with developing a draft concept plan, taking community feedback into consideration, with particular attention to concerns raised and experiences that inform the differing areas of community support.

During development of the draft concept plan, Council will explore design solutions that respond to the concerns raised around safety, traffic, parking and antisocial behaviour, along with other feedback themes received. The draft concept design will also be informed by an independent traffic impact assessment.

Additionally, based on community feedback about safety in the area, Council will determine how we can continue to improve safety with informed design. This includes direct engagement with the local Police.

The draft concept plan will be presented back to the community for further consultation later this year.