We’ve achieved so much in our neighbourhood since we began working in a highly localised way. This means the projects we do and the way we engage with our communities has your needs in mind.
Here’s five projects we've been working on in Docklands.
Engaging with community, listening to what you have told us and then turning your suggestions into actions is a continuous process. Our first community consultation in 2022 asked you to talk about any gaps or issues that you were experiencing.
You highlighted that COVID-19 lockdowns forced us all to live more locally and that these amenities are even more important to you. You told us what you value in your communities, what the challenges and opportunities are and suggestions for shaping and planning the future together.
The priorities listed here reflect the great diversity of voices in the neighbourhood and are the beginning of a cycle of listening that is endorsed by Council’s Neighbourhood Planning Framework.
We’ve listened to you and heard you. We will continue to listen to you and expect over time for recurring themes to emerge and for these local priorities to grow and change. This portal will regularly update what is already happening and what areas we will be exploring further.
For the Wurundjeri, Bunurong, Taungurung, Dja Dja Wurrung and Wadawurrung peoples of the Eastern Kulin, the place now known as Melbourne has always been an important meeting place and location for events of political, cultural, social and educational significance. We will ensure that the Traditional Owners’ culture, lore, knowledge, and heritage enrich the city’s growth and development.
We will reduce economic and social inequality by ensuring universal access to housing, core services and information.
What you told us
You told us that you would like greater visibility of Aboriginal culture and history and greater use of Boon Wurrung (Bunurong) Woi-wurrung (Wurundjeri) language through place names, signage, museum displays, a garden, education programs, and displays and events that showcase local Aboriginal history. You would also like us to involve Aboriginal leaders in our decision making.
"I would love to see some more natural indigenous plants in Docklands to celebrate the connection to the land."
What we’re doing
As part of our Reconciliation Action Plan 2021-23 we are identifying and implementing opportunities for the dual naming of spaces to reflect Aboriginal cultural heritage for the Docklands area.
In August 2022, Council announced that the Docklands ferry terminal at Victoria Harbour previously referred to as VH08, will now be known as Yanonung Quay a Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung word meaning waterways.
At this year’s narrm ngarrgu | Melbourne Knowledge Week we launched Mapping Aboriginal Melbourne a spatial mapping tool highlighting places and events of Aboriginal cultural significance within the city. An interactive map is located in Town Hall Commons and available in desktop and mobile versions. This educational resource has been developed with the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation and the Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation and supports Council in placemaking and signage. The Map identifies a number of Aboriginal Places of Significance in the Docklands area.
We are also partnering with the Victorian Government and other stakeholders to deliver specific components of Greenline along the north bank of the Birrarung Yarra River.
We host the YIRRAMBOI Festival every second year, providing opportunities for Aboriginal artists to present their continuous and diverse contemporary practices.
If you want to become more familiar with Aboriginal history and living culture, check out this reading list of books by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander writers. You can borrow all the books from our libraries.
October 2023
- On 21 March , Melbourne City Council endorsed a motion in support of the 2017 Uluru Statement from the Heart, and the ‘yes’ campaign for the Constitutional Recognition of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament.
As part of our ongoing commitment to truth-telling, we have compiled a set of resources about the Voice to Parliament, the 2017 Uluru Statement from the Heart, and the upcoming referendum. We will continue updating these resources as the referendum approaches, including information in multiple languages. We encourage you to bookmark this page to stay up to date.
Authorised by Sally Capp in Melbourne on behalf of Melbourne City Council.
February 2023
- Monday 13 February marked the 15th Anniversary of the National Apology to the Stolen Generations. As part of the ongoing work towards reconciliation, we are in the process of acknowledging, recognising and paying tribute to the Stolen Generations by establishing a marker within the municipality. The Victorian Aboriginal Community – including those who are part of the Stolen Generations and their families – are invited to provide feedback on three potential shortlisted marker locations.
- Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Elder, Uncle Dave Wandin, shares the importance of Understanding an Acknowledgement of Country and how to deliver it with respect.
Find out more about Melbourne’s Traditional Owners and Aboriginal peoples’ deep connection to Country.
What you told us
You told us that finding your way around Docklands can be confusing and difficult at times, especially for visitors. You told us that as a large area, Docklands would benefit from improved signage and information on how to best navigate the neighbourhood, particularly the areas near the water. You told us that visits to the area would be easier if there were more parking opportunities and increased public transport during the weekends. You suggested a new transport option of a river ferry at public transport prices.
“A visitors’ centre for people coming off the Ferry. Docklands is a tourist space, yet it has no visitor centre or clear mapping.”
“Cheaper and more free parking along with increased Tram runs on the weekends.”
“A commuter ferry that goes as far as Swan St/Collins St tram bridge. The whole boulevard should have cafes and things along there, could be much more alive.”
What we’re doing
Docklands currently has 92 pedestrian wayfinding signs/maps provided by Council, which is the most signs in any suburb outside of the CBD neighbourhood, with many of them recently updated.
Docklands also has about 20 bicycle wayfinding signs and seven map-based waterways signs.
We will continue looking at ways to improve and address navigational gaps for both residents and visitors.
Although we do not manage the public transport system, we continue to advocate on behalf of residents and visitors to state government for increased public transport services to Docklands.
February 2023
- We are renewing and upgrading infrastructure to comply with the Disability Discrimination Act, predominantly Tactile Ground Surface Indicators (TGSIs). This program of works is running ahead of schedule and at the end of January approximately 20 projects have been delivered, equating to over 70% of the program.
What you told us
Engaging with the community is important to you, for your physical and mental wellbeing and to provide community connections. To encourage community-focused activities, you would like to see more venues and facilities offering programs for all ages and abilities and providing spaces for hire for community groups.
You have expressed that you would like the community garden that serviced New Quay and surrounding residential areas, to be permanently reinstated. This garden is needed not only for social connection but to provide a source of fresh healthy foods for residents.
“We need more spaces to hold community activities, sometimes the library is too far away for families to go to a program, especially straight after school."
“More spaces to meet up as a community would be amazing.”
“A permanent community garden that is here to stay.”
What we’re doing
We offer a wide range of services in Docklands including popular Library @ The Dock which runs numerous programs catering for all ages and genders. We also provide Health Services, Ron Barassi Senior Park, Melbourne City Marina, Yarra’s Edge Marina and several parks such as Point Park and Buluk Reserve.
There is currently a community garden located in Geographe Street Docklands sustained by volunteers. You can find more information on community gardens, street gardens and compost hubs here.
We continue to work with Development Victoria to determine short, medium and long-term requirements for community infrastructure in Docklands.
October 2023
- Several art and library programs are delivered at Library at The Dock. The Maker space at the library allows people to use tools such as sewing machines, 3d printing machines, embroidery and computers free of charge, to enhance their skills.
- Inclusive employment program Game Changers, supported eight young people to gain employment at our recreation facilities. This program, delivered in partnership by The Huddle and YMCA, provides free support to young people seeking employment, including resume writing, interview practice, and career planning and goal setting. The program has helped improve diversity in the recreation facilities’ workforce with 26 per cent living in the City of Melbourne, 25 per cent born overseas, 15 per cent identifying as being a part of the LGBTQI+ community, and 9 per cent with a disability.
- TalktoMe was an application developed by St Vincent’s hospital and funded by us to facilitate brief, sentence-based, non-clinical information in multiple languages when communicating about day-to-day topics relating to healthcare.
- An inclusion and access officer role was created in our Family Services team to provide inclusive and responsive support for families. The officer will help families from culturally diverse backgrounds access support and services.
- We received a High Commendation award at the Victorian Multicultural Awards for Excellence, for the holistic organisational approach to supporting international students during COVID-19, and newly arrived refugees evacuated from Kabul.
- Support for local young people continued through our partnership with The Drum, which provides inclusive services and programs for young people from all genders, religions, cultural and identity backgrounds. This partnership also supported Queerspace Youth, a peer-led program for queer, trans, intersex, gender diverse or questioning people aged 16-25 years old.
- Hidden Disabilities Sunflower Training was completed by 518 ‘Red Coat’ [GB1] volunteers and 74 staff members. This training helps volunteers and staff to be aware and support people living with non-visible disabilities.
February 2023
- A forum to mark the 30 year commemoration of the Disability Discrimination Act was held on 24 November at Melbourne Town Hall. This was an opportunity for community members to come together to hear and share on how the Disability Discrimination Act has enabled greater access and inclusion for people with disability.
We will prioritise our environment and take urgent action to reduce emissions and waste in order to protect public health, strengthen the economy and create a city that mitigates and adapts to climate change. The City of Melbourne declared a climate and biodiversity emergency in 2019.
What you told us
You would like to see more greening of the neighbourhood’s streets, laneways and buildings including rooftops. You also want more biodiversity and flora and fauna within Docklands focusing on deciduous trees and lush planting.
“A lot more greenery - not bush land and grasses but actual deciduous trees and lush planting. A complete redevelopment giving it its own unique character”.
“Ron Barassi Senior Park is great, more rest and play space for other informal/leisure activities”.
“More trees! Native ones that don't die in the summer heat! The native bird diversity in Docklands is amazing right now, we should be fostering that biodiversity and making it grow!”
What we’re doing
The Urban Forest Fund supports a wide range of projects, including gardens, tree planting, biodiversity projects, green roofs and vertical greening, and intersects with the Green Our City Strategic Action Plan which aims to improve the quality and quantity of green roofs and vertical greening in Melbourne.
Our Nature in the City Strategy also outlines how we will protect and enhance ecosystem health and biodiversity in our city.
The City of Melbourne is also taking the first step to deliver the Greenline initiative to transform the north bank along the Yarra River - Birrarung, with the commencement of community consultation on the Draft Greenline Implementation Plan. The implementation plan sets out a bold and transformational vision for the revitalisation of the north bank of the river, including developing five precincts covering four kilometres between Birrarung Marr and the Bolte Bridge.
October 2023
- The Victoria Point Podium Greening project received a $500,000 matched-funding grant from the Urban Forest Fund to transform the Marvel Stadium concourse from grey to green. The project was completed in July. The project has transformed this underutilised podium area into a welcoming space with the addition of five new garden beds, canopy trees, habitat plantings, seating areas for relaxation, and upgraded lighting for safety. Once established, the new plantings will lead to a total of 2850 square metres of green cover.
- Point Park dog park has had new bush and fence borders installed to provide a visual barrier for dogs during off-leash hours to deter them from nearby path and cycleways.
- We’ve installed a new temporary pocket park at Yanonung Quay. A short-term action from the Docklands Summit was to deliver immediate beautification across Docklands to lift the quality of the space through greening. We have finalised work on this, with 10 planter boxes being relocated to New Quay Promenade and Harbour Esplanade. This temporary pocket park will provide additional landscaping and seating options for visitors and ferry patrons to enjoy waterside views, and space to grab a coffee and admire the Cow Up A Tree artwork. The parklet has been donated to the City of Melbourne by Metro Tunnel Creative Program and installation is funded by the Melbourne City Revitalisation Fund, a partnership between the Victorian Government and City of Melbourne.
-We continued our tree planting program with 2554 trees planted this year. There are over 80,000 trees in the City of Melbourne, and our canopy cover was mapped at 25 per cent this year. Tree planting examples can be found on;
February 2023
- We have launched the trial of the Floating Wetlands project on the Yarra River - Birrarung. Three large wetlands have been towed onto the river, occupying prime locations at Yarra’s Edge near Webb Bridge and Victoria Harbour Promenade in Docklands. The Floating Wetlands trial is a joint initiative of the City of Melbourne and the State Government. The project has been funded through a $700,000 grant from the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning and was first identified by the City of Melbourne’s 2019 Yarra River Strategy.
- The Greenline Project’s Birrarung Marr Precinct Site One concept design was endorsed by the Future Melbourne Committee on Tuesday 6 December 2022. We will now progress the detailed design and program planning for Birrarung Marr Precinct Site One, working towards construction commencing in 2023. Thank you to everyone who contributed their feedback. Consultation took place from 2 August to 12 September 2022. View the final concept design and learn more about what we heard on the community consultation page. You can also access the meeting notes and watch a livestream from the Future Melbourne Committee meeting.
- We recently hosted two successful Canopy Green Roof Forum workshops at the Library at the Dock. These workshops were facilitated by Melbourne’s emerging horticultural star Jac Semmler, who provided residents from Docklands, CBD and Southbank with practical planting advice and design tips to beautify their rooftops and balconies with biodiverse flowers and year-round blooms.
- Community participants were delighted to partake in the planting session with Councillor Hakim, and take home a special potted creation.
- We planted 6 new street trees in Fishplate Lane, Docklands, in line with the Docklands Urban Forest Precinct Plan.
What you told us
You told us that waste management is a key issue in Docklands both within apartments and on the street. You would like more bins on the walkways around the water and better access to doggy bags. You would also like better systems and options for recycling and disposing of waste for people living in apartments.
“I’d like it to be cleaner, every weekend after the influx of visitors the walkways are left a mess and it takes days for it all to be cleaned up."
“More cleaning in certain parts of Docklands streets and paving.”
“A better way for residents to dispose of their rubbish.”
What we’re doing
Our Waste and Resource Recovery Strategy outlines ways we can help the city to become a zero-waste city. We provide a wide range of services including street bins, garbage compactors and residential and commercial bin collections and recycling.
We are leading the reduction of food waste and diversion of waste from landfill, through our food and organics (FOGO) collection service for single-unit and multi-unit dwellings up to five storeys. We will also be trialling textile bins and a food organics pilot in high-rise buildings.
City of Melbourne has also set up recycling points at all our libraries as well as providing e-waste collection services for residential buildings. To prevent e-wastes going into landfill, we offer e-waste drop-off locations.
We also support the idea of a circular economy and through leadership and community neighbourhood projects, including social enterprise grants, are reviewing a container deposit scheme, alternative waste technologies and developing circular economy guidelines.
October 2023
- All residential single-unit dwellings and low-rise multi-unit dwellings in the City of Melbourne had access to a food waste recycling service in 2022-23. This has resulted in more than 5600 tonnes of food waste being diverted from landfill and recycled into compost.
- Works have progressed so remaining households can access food waste recycling, including trialling options for recycling within high-rise buildings, which includes food waste dehydrator technology. This program diverts organic waste from landfill while minimising waste truck movement within the city.
- Programs to minimise waste from businesses within the city have also started, including educating small to medium businesses about the benefits of minimising waste and opting for reusable and recyclable packaging and products. Food waste recycling has also expanded within the city for businesses, utilising electric bikes to collect and divert over 146.59 tonnes of food waste.
February 2023
- We continue to provide a wide range of services for reusing, recycling or disposing of unwanted household items and materials. 11,400 combined tonnes were collected from various sources including communal recycling bins, cardboard bins and residential collections between October 2022 and January 2023
- We continue to roll out the Food Organics Service to high-rise residential apartments across Melbourne. Selected buildings are undertaking a 12-month pilot program to collect and process food scraps using an on-site organic processor. For more information on the pilot, visit Food Organics High-Rise Pilot.
We will focus on driving economic recovery and creating the conditions for a strong, adaptive, sustainable and thriving future city economy supported by a diverse mix of industries and jobs that provide dignity and opportunity.
What you told us
You told us that increasing the capacity and diversity of the hospitality industry would be an important way of reinvigorating the area now and in the future. You would like initiatives that encourage more cafés, restaurants and bars to enhance food and night-life offerings in the Docklands neighbourhood.
You said that you would particularly like access to a greater variety of local and fresh foods. You are especially enthusiastic about the idea of having a fish market in the area.
“A larger range of fresh food would be amazing. We live by the water; can we have a seafood market?”
“Something that draws people here, great restaurants, great bars, Central Pier back, fresh food like a classic French market.”
“Fantastic dining experiences. Right now, Docklands is over-sized empty restaurants, empty shop fronts and an area where the authorities have effectively forgotten about. Embracing artists and restaurants would change it for the better."
What we’re doing
Through our Business Precinct Program 2021-25 we provide annual financial support to help precinct trader associations improve the look and feel of their areas, deliver local activations and marketing and promotion campaigns.
We provide a range of support for businesses including: grants, mentoring, workshops, extended outdoor dining initiatives, regular newsletters, research and data sharing.
We continue to strengthen Melbourne's economic recovery, including through precinct and shopfront activation, delivery of an enhanced business concierge service and support for the night-time economy.
Our Community Food Relief Plan 2021-2025 commits to improving access to food and food relief services, and to investigating opportunities for pop-up markets in our local neighbourhoods.
Our Community Food Guide is a resource for community agencies and anyone in the community who needs information on how to access affordable, fresh and healthy food.
October 2023
- We’re supporting Docklands Chamber of Commerce with funding for business development initiatives, consumer advertising, marketing and promotion campaigns and local activations that promote the Docklands trader area to visitors.
- Our small business grants program supports new businesses to get started and existing businesses to expand and grow. This year we have a special focus on supporting small businesses that enhance the city’s vitality by increasing the occupancy rate of shopfronts across the municipality.
- Since the Shopfront Activation Program began in September 2021, there have been a total of 67 improvements across Carlton, CBD and Docklands, with 19 of those being in Docklands.
- Our Business Concierge team had 8089 contacts with business across the City of Melbourne between February and September.
February 2023
- Since the Shopfront Activation Program commenced in September 2021, there have been a total of 66 activations across Docklands, Carlton and the Melbourne CBD. In Docklands there have been 18 activations (14 currently open, 2 opening this month and two closed) across retail, creative and professional services sectors.
- We’ve launched the Melbourne Economy Snapshot, a free seasonal activity guide designed to help businesses make data-led decisions by understanding Melbourne’s new rhythm.
- The first edition shows a sky-high December, with a record $1.1b spent across the city. Friday and Saturday remain the busiest days in Melbourne, while our night-time economy continues to flourish. Delve into the nitty gritty and explore weekday, weekend and night-time activity.
- Dusk 2 Dawn applications were open throughout November and December. Applications are currently being reviewed, with successful activations commencing in May.
- The City of Melbourne’s social enterprise grants program supports social enterprise businesses to thrive in Melbourne. The program supports startups and existing enterprises which are expanding or developing new products or services with a distinctly social purpose. Applications are currently open and close at 2pm Friday 10 March 2023.
- Between October 2022 and January 2023 our Business Concierge service have had 5000 interactions with businesses across the municipality. The range of enquiries have been simple support requests over the phone and email, face to face interactions and supporting new businesses in their start up
- The Christmas Collective program is an initiative as part of the Christmas Festival. One of the objectives is to increase visitation and spend supporting the economy. A total of $74,726.00 in funding was allocated to 15 businesses/groups to deliver an event or activity.
- To support local businesses, we lifted the holiday spirit with our Christmas Decoration program, including the Melbourne CBD, East Melbourne, Carlton, Docklands, Southbank, North Melbourne and Kensington.
- Docklands and Carlton have been focus areas in recent years from both a decoration and programming content perspective. Both neighbourhoods had key programming content delivered as part of the 2022 Program - Docklands Maze and The Carlton Roller Rink. The CBD and the river’s edge in Southbank remains a focus with regards to driving visitation and connection to the city’s core retail and hospitality offering.
What you told us
You told us that putting new life now into some of the spaces within Docklands is important.
You especially highlighted the key role that Central Pier plays in attracting people to the neighbourhood and creating a sense of vitality within the community.
You told us that there needs to be more usage of empty spaces especially in front of Central Pier and between the restaurants and the water.
“It needs to get more vibrant because of COVID-19 it has fallen in a hole a bit. We have no tourists; in the good times we had lots of tourists/more things like the drone show.”
“Fix the Harbour Esplanade waterfront. It really is an embarrassment to Melbourne. Look what Geelong has done or any other major city. Rotting stumps and dilapidated buildings, old tram lines and shelters, and a hotch potch of coloured concrete is an eye sore.”
“I think revitalising the pier and showing something is being done, it would help with the economy and liven up the area.”
What we’re doing
We held a Docklands Summit on 2 September 2022 with 100 key stakeholders attending including the Victorian Government, major landholders, major businesses/employers, representative groups, and the small business and resident community. The Summit explored what a positive and sustainable future for Docklands could look like with a view to looking at opportunities and priorities to regenerate Docklands.
The revitalisation of Docklands is a key priority for the City of Melbourne, and has been identified as a Major Initiative in the Council Plan 2021-25 and the Economic Development Strategy 2031.
We are supporting Melbourne’s creative industries through reuse and activation of precincts and vacant spaces throughout the city.
We are very committed to creating connected and inclusive communities especially at a neighbourhood level. We provide small grants for community organisations and individuals to support community connection, social inclusion, access and participation. We are keen to partner local communities to continue to explore these opportunities further.
What you told us
You value Docklands as a place with unique features and would like to see it reinvigorated with cutting edge events that cater to both residents and visitors.
You’d like a wider variety of activities in the neighbourhood specifically events that utilise the water and its immediate surrounds. Some of you said you would like a focus on neighbourhood events to get people together. Visitors expressed that they would love to have the Melbourne Wheel back up and running.
“Drone show was awesome, boat shows, and wooden boat shows in the past have been fantastic. An event with local participation would be great, Dockfest!”
“A complete redevelopment giving it its own unique character. The ‘Miami’ of Melbourne.”
“It's really been impacted by COVID-19. I would like the council to put more effort into more attractions to entice people to visit. The other side is a bit like a ghost town. I would like them to concentrate more on the water aspect. Attractions they talk a lot but don't do anything.”
What we’re doing
Each year we deliver many events in Docklands with recent attractions including; NYE celebration zone, Firelight Festival, The Playground in 2021/2022, The Summer Nights Drones event 2022, elements of Christmas Festival, Melbourne Fashion Week and music pops via our busking program.
We also encourage community groups and organisations to develop and facilitate their own local events in the neighbourhood through our Community funding and grants program.
October 2023
- Now or Never festival was delivered across our city for 17 days with a wide range of artistic exhibitions on offer. We welcomed approximately 135,000 people from all around Victoria to enjoy the exhibitions.
- Through the shopfront activation program and several premier events such as Firelight Festival and the upcoming Now or Never Festival, we have reports of an increase in the number of people visiting Docklands.
- The Docklands Stakeholder Group has been established as a key action from the Docklands Summit. It provides a forum for information sharing, improving community connection, identifying opportunities to leverage existing grants, and understanding each group’s priorities and potential alignments. The group meets bi-montlhy and is currently working on actioning key priority areas for Docklands.
February 2023
- Library Cinema has launched for 2023 and is held on the last Monday of the month at Library at The Dock from 3-5pm. It is free and open to all.
We will celebrate and protect the places, people and cultures that make Melbourne a unique, vibrant and creative city with world-leading liveability.
What you told us
The cleanliness of the neighbourhood is important to you and you would like cleaner streets and footpaths throughout Docklands and near the water, especially after weekend events.
As the waterways are a key feature in Docklands, you would like them to be cleaner and better maintained. You believe this would help lift the image of the area, attract more visitors and encourage people to experience the water activities that are available.
“I would love the water to look cleaner, not just in colour but the rubbish that we consistently see floating in it.”
“Can we have more regular clean ups of the footpaths, especially after weekend events?”
What we’re doing:
We have installed Litter traps and Seabins to prevent rubbish entering Yarra River Birrarung, Moonee Ponds Creek and the Maribyrnong River. More information on how we are keeping our waterways clean can be found at Clean waterways
We continue to respond to the needs of the community and provide extra cleaning in areas when necessary and are open to feedback on specific problem areas within Docklands.
You can report a location for street cleaning, repair or maintenance online anytime, or call us on 9658 9658.
Love our Street 3008 is a community volunteer-lead group that looks to improve cleanliness of the environment and regularly patrols Docklands to ensure rubbish and debris do not enter the water.
October 2023
- A new raingarden and permeable pavement have been installed in Fishplate Lane which support greening and remove pollution from stormwater.
- New rubbish deflector pontoons have been installed at Yarra’s Edge by our Wateways Team. Floating wetlands have been installed in Victoria Harbour and Yarra’s Edge.We are also working with external stakeholders, including Melbourne Water and Parks Victoria to reduce pollution .
- We continue to expand our Rapid Response Clean Team to fast-track graffiti removal, dumped rubbish, cigarettes, street sweeping and syringe collection across the city. Residents, workers and visitors continue to play an important role in reporting graffiti and rubbish across the city using Council’s QR code reporting system. From January to August this year we received 25,549 requests to respond to graffiti and cleaned more than 70,000 square metres of surfaces of graffiti.
February 2023
- We continue to expand our Rapid Response Clean Team to fast-track graffiti removal, dumped rubbish, cigarettes, street sweeping and syringe collection across the city. Residents, workers and visitors continue to play an important role in reporting graffiti and rubbish across the city using Council’s QR code reporting system.
Between October 2022 and January 2023:
What you told us
You have concerns about the abundance of high-rise construction in the area and its impact on the liveability of residents. You want more regulation around what can and can't be built in Docklands and would like the opportunity to have a say in upcoming developments for the neighbourhood.
“There weren't many buildings here and the river attracted us. Not being able to be built out attracted us so we have the views of the river, that's the main reason.”
“That's hard to say as every bit of vacant land is being built on. I have not heard what they are doing with Southern Cross Station or the shunting yard. I have heard there may be a building and apartments and a football field on it. All they seem to want to do is put high rise buildings on the vacant land.”
“I'd like to see all the undeveloped areas cleaned up. We don't need all high-rise buildings, need a mix of housing and more open areas.”
What we’re doing
We’ve developed a Development Activity Model to better inform you of future buildings and construction in your area. Following extensive review and consultation, our new Code of Practice for Building, Construction and Works came into effect in March 2022 and regulates the conduct of all works that affect public space and ensures the safety and amenity of the neighbourhoods.
We are advocating to the State Government for a stronger regulatory framework to manage construction noise and reduce the negative effects on the local community.
October 2023
- The Excellent City Series of forums explored what design excellence means if you live in, work in, learn in or visit Melbourne. A key objective of these forums was to engage directly with the community to hear their perspectives, to inform and improve outcomes in the built environment.
February 2023
- The Neighbourhood Portals have been updated with links to planning register entries relevant to each neighbourhood, making it easier for community members to find local planning applications. Weekly Planning Applications and Decisions Lists are now sorted by neighbourhood for ease of reference. Sign up to receive these weekly emails.
What you told us
You want Docklands to embrace and celebrate its uniqueness as a harbourside neighbourhood. You see the water and its immediate surrounds as a key feature of the area and want initiatives that promote and accentuate this distinctive characteristic. Transforming Docklands into a special destination that provides one-of-a-kind experiences is important to you.
“The water is a cherished feature of life in Docklands; people like seeing and being near it and want to see it accentuated.”
“More cafes, restaurants and pubs so that it also become a frequently visited place for after work events and parties from all of Melbourne.”
“To be fully developed. Big attractions moved here like the Aquarium. Cutting edge and stunning design of new buildings and attractions.”
What we’re doing
We are very committed to creating connected and inclusive communities especially at a neighbourhood level. We provide small grants for community organisations and individuals to support community connection, social inclusion, access and participation. We are keen to partner local communities to continue to explore these opportunities further.
All year round we run engaging and positive campaigns showcasing all the reasons people should visit the different neighbourhoods across the city, including Docklands.
We profile our world class arts and culture, bars, restaurants and retail offerings to highlight the unique aspects of Melbourne. Our Melbourne Magazine and What’s On publication regularly feature the people and attractions of our vibrant precincts.
October 2023
- The 2023 Melbourne Boat Show is coming back to Docklands for another year along Harbour Esplanade as well as activation along Victoria Harbour.
- Additional berthing will be installed at VH06 for on water businesses.
- As part of our continued advocacy to the Victorian Government, we wrote to the Minister of Planning and the CEO of Development Victoria regarding plans to reinstate the Moonee Ponds Creek trail in Docklands. As of June, the Victorian Government was still reviewing the Draft Moonee Ponds Creek Implementation Plan.
February 2023
- The Melbourne Boat Show was held on 20-23 October on New Quay Promenade and was a huge success, with the Docklands Chamber of Commerce supporting the event with giveaways, promotions and Docklands Dollars.
- The Docklands Community Christmas Sports Day was held on 10 December at Ron Barassi Snr Oval, with activities, market stalls, face painting yoga & pilates classes and more.
- A variety of Christmas activations were hosted in the Docklands including District Docklands Twilight Christmas Market, Newquay Twilight Christmas Market and Christmas Chocolate Workshop.
We will plan and design for the safety and wellbeing of those who live, visit, work and do business in Melbourne, regardless of their background.
What you told us
You said that the neighbourhood would benefit from having more sport and recreation options. Specifically, you’d like community sports programs for all ages and for us to explore the potential to develop a recreation centre in Docklands.
You’ve made several suggestions, with the most desired request being a public pool. Other popular requests include tennis facilities, a gym, water park, skate park, basketball court, and indoor sports facilities for activities such as futsal or frisbee, and athletics.
“A skate park in Docklands would be amazing, it will engage the youth and also ensure that they are not getting in people's way.”
“A local swimming pool in the area would be great.”
“More social local sports competitions like table tennis or something that everyone can get involved in.”
What we’re doing
The Active Melbourne app is our free fitness service to support your health and fitness and includes on-demand and live virtual gym classes, tracking and personalised training programs. Our website also has other training resources including Workout Wednesday videos.
With a big focus on Active Melbourne, we support health and wellness through encouraging participation in healthy moderate physical activity. We are doing this through supporting recreation in our beautiful parks and gardens. We have also extended our network of dedicated bike lanes to encourage more people to cycle.
We have recently designated two new spaces in Docklands as timed dogs off-leash areas: Point Park and Ron Barassi Senior Park.
Find out more information about walking your dogs in the neighbourhood and the locations of new off-leash areas in the municipality go to Walking your dog - City of Melbourne.
February 2023
- The ASFA United Through Football Soccer Tournament was held in the Docklands at Ron Barassi Snr Park.
- We are currently working on developing 'dogs in the park' events in neighbourhoods. These events, in partnership with behaviour trainers from the Lost Dogs' Home aim to raise awareness and provide education of dog behaviour, enrichment and responsible dog ownership to improve dog and human experiences in public places.
What you told us
You said you’d like to feel safer on the streets, and this could be helped through addressing drug and alcohol use, mental health issues, aggressive behaviour and advocating for more police and security presence and better lighting. You told us that events running long into the night are an issue, particularly with patrons causing a public nuisance after leaving venues.
“Better regulation of behaviour on the streets outside pubs, especially in the 10pm to 1am time frame. Surely we should not need to phone the police every week about alcohol and drug fuelled anti-social behaviour.”
“More green space, less concrete. Less cigarettes butts in the park, less smokers. More police on the streets at night. Less crime, no drug dealers.”
“More control after hours, many drug areas and hooning around the streets; and many people leave garbage and rubbish.”
What we’re doing
We continue to work with Victoria Police and other agencies to deliver a range of initiatives that improve safety on the streets of Melbourne and within our communities, and are keen to hear your ideas on further addressing this.
Various noise related issues, including noise from commercial and business, entertainment and sporting venues, can be reported through our noise reporting tool.
The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) offers a 24-hour pollution hotline on 1300 372 842 where you can report noise from entertainment venues and events or any other music noise.
October 2023
- Four park paths were upgraded to provide safe, clear and well lit accessible paths of travel at Point Park, Princess Park (Icon Park Path), ArtPlay Playground boardwalk, and Princess Park (north) board walk.
- A new pedestrian crossing has been installed in Docklands Drive.
- Community Resilience Assessments are being conducted in North and West Melbourne, and Docklands to understand and respond to the physical and social vulnerabilities that communities face before, during, and after a disaster
- 'What you need to know to survive on the streets’ is a short information booklet produced every two months by a group of people experiencing or with lived experience of homelessness, published by our libraries in partnership with Cohealth. Participants have also been supported to learn and care for each other and the community, building social, emotional, and practical skills.
- Our library social worker outreach program continues to support community members through outreach and connection to social services.
- A ‘drug safety in the city’ flyer has been produced and distributed to key stakeholders and businesses.
- A Local Safety Committee Meeting was held on 23 June, which covered the Melbourne West area, including the western part of the CBD, North Melbourne, Docklands, Parkville and Carlton. Representatives from each of these neighbourhoods were present.
- We hosted the Melbourne Licensees Forum in June 2023, where licensed venues shared information and discussed matters impacting them. The forum shared information about the late night liquor license freeze and public intoxication law reform.
February 2023
- As part of Victoria Police's Neighbourhood Policing initiative, a Local Safety Committee meeting was held for Melbourne West and North on 9 December 2022, and included representatives from Carlton, Parkville, Docklands, Kensington, North Melbourne, West Melbourne and the western part of the Melbourne CBD.
What you told us
We’ve heard that you’d like to see more amenities in the Docklands to help reinvigorate the area and get more people out and about utilising the spaces. Your suggestions include; BBQS, public toilets, covered seating, tables, drinking fountains, shelter and shading, extra bins and doggy bag dispensers.
“More BBQ areas, especially for use during the summer periods. Can residents have priority over visitors?”
“There’s a lot of open spaces around Docklands, we could have green outdoor seating that can be used by the surrounding businesses like the parklets in the CBD.”
“More public toilets to access when walking around from New Quay to Victoria Harbour.”
What we’re doing:
We provide and maintain a range of street furniture and amenities to support people who live, work and play in the Docklands.
We are currently upgrading the Melbourne City Marina our largest visitor berthing facility in Melbourne.
In the 2022/23 financial year we are also planning five footpath renewal projects.
February 2023
- The toilet in Docklands Park is now complete.
What you told us
We’ve heard that you desire greater community cohesion for a better Docklands in the future. You want to be part of strong, connected communities that are family friendly and that also support the vulnerable members of society.
“Growth in community events and programs. Living alone, it can be quite solitary.”
“More community events, funding for community services.”
“Focus on developing community events for the actual community that lives in Docklands so we can get to know each other, especially after COVID-19, don’t just run an event to bring people in from outside.”
What we’re doing
We support the delivery of a range of community events through our Events Partnership Program a Connected Communities grants and Connected Neighbourhood Small Grants.
Our Business Precincts Program also supports local business associations to run activations and we deliver and support numerous international students programs.
October 2023
- A translation function was added to Participate Melbourne, supporting users to translate content into the top 10 languages other than English spoken in the municipality.
- Firelight Festival created a social story to support participants to understand and plan for what they would see, hear and do at the event. Social stories are particularly helpful for children and people who are neurodiverse or have a neurological disabilities as they help to lessen the anxiety of the new by introducing the event ahead of time. The festival also provided accessible entry points with specific drop-off and pick-up zones and staff had communication boards to support conversations with people with limited language skills.
- The Connected Neighbourhoods Small Grants program provides small grants to support connection and community-led responses to the neighbourhood priorities. We recently funded a local mahjong games night to engage residents with one another, which is run fortnightly at a local restaurant.
Febraury 2023
- Book-A-Librarian has kicked off again for 2023 where people can book one on one time to get some digital literacy support with online platforms and use of digital devices.
- We are in the process of reviewing the City of Melbourne Food Policy and during March will be seeking community feedback on the draft food policy via the Participate Melbourne page. We encourage you to have your say in City of Melbourne supporting and promoting a food system that provides good food for all.
- We are launching the Grow It Local program in early 2023 for all City of Melbourne community members to get involved in growing food at home. As part of the program, Grow it Local have launched the latest Autumn Seed Service, a patch-to-plate adventure that makes free heirloom seeds and instructional content available to local residents. This free offer is available to the first 100 participants who register to receive a package containing heirloom seed varieties including kale, rainbow chard and spinach. Participants will learn to grow from seed-to-spanakopita with Costa Georgiadis via online videos for each stage of the growing journey and support is also available from Grow it Local’s garden guru.
- We have supported various community projects with Connected Neighbourhood Small Grants:
What you told us
You told us that you would prefer less Airbnb short stay accommodation options in residential buildings and areas. If these accommodation offerings are to continue you would like to see a better system of managing and regulating the industry, ensuring both owners and occupants adhere to the laws and rules set out by the apartment buildings.
“For the council to address the antisocial hooning and to limit the amount of Airbnb’s in the area as the short stayers can be a nuisance to local residents."
“Get rid of party boats, these operators have no regard for residents of the area. Patrons arrive, they consume alcohol prior to boarding the boats, once on-board the operators fill them with alcohol and the dump them on our doorstep affected by alcohol.”
“Would prefer less Airbnb/short stay/weekend party focus.”
What we’re doing
We provide funding to the Docklands Representative Group to advocate to Council on behalf of Docklands residents and to engage and activate community cohesion.
We have some resources on our apartment living page to support the strata community and are keen to hear your ideas on further addressing this.
Legislative changes have been made to help regulate short stay accommodation
You can also report various noise related issues, including noise from residents, commercial and business, entertainment and sporting venues, through our noise reporting tool.
The Victorian Government has established a Hooning Community Reference Group to understand intentional high-risk driving, or hooning, in Victoria. A series of four meetings will be held across Melbourne to hear from local voices and understand local context.
October 2023
- We will encourage short-term accommodation operators to shift their properties onto the long-term rental market to deliver more homes for people wanting to live in Melbourne. At the 29 August Council meeting, Councillors voted to begin consultation to inform the development of new local laws that are designed to encourage the flip of short-term accommodation into long-term rentals. Consultation opened in September for feedback. New regulation is likely to be introduced in February 2024.
- Our Power Melbourne project will install a network of neighbourhood batteries around the city to help renters, people living in apartments, and those running small businesses access more affordable renewable energy. Last year we consulted with community on where the first batteries could be installed, and the first three locations were approved by Council: Library at the Dock in Docklands, Boyd Community Hub in Southbank, and Council House 2 in CBD.
What you told us
You told us that you need education on how to be safer around the water. With many of you walking your children to school, water safety classes have been a key topic of discussion in the area. A better understanding of where to go for help in case of an incident or accident on the water is also important to you and the community.
“Our family doesn’t know how to swim and with little children we are always on edge when we are walking close to the water in case anything happens.”
“Safety programs around the water are needed here.”
“I would like my child to learn more about the water and how to behave around it.”
What we’re doing
City of Melbourne Maternal and Child Health Services continually educate and discuss water safety issues with parents and children when they attend consultations. Parenting Services offer information for parents on Water Safety. We also offer water safety training at our sport and recreation venues.
Acknowledgement of Traditional Owners
The City of Melbourne respectfully acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land we govern, the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung and Bunurong / Boon Wurrung peoples of the Kulin and pays respect to their Elders past and present. We acknowledge and honour the unbroken spiritual, cultural and political connection they have maintained to this unique place for more than 2000 generations.
We accept the invitation in the Uluru Statement from the Heart and are committed to walking together to build a better future.
