New community centre to deliver more services closer to home


August 14, 2023

The City of Melbourne is moving ahead with plans for a new community centre in North Melbourne, which will bring together a range of vital services to better cater for the neighbourhood and its fast-growing population.

At Tuesday’s Future Melbourne Committee meeting, councillors will consider a consultation process for the community to have their say on what they’d like to see in the new space.

The multi-use centre will be built on Melrose Street on the current site of the Jean McKendry Neighbourhood Centre and Hotham Hub. The location is central to the Macaulay precinct, which is expected to be home to 10,000 residents by 2051 – triple the current population.

It will provide a range of new and expanded community services across a modern 3,000m2 space, including:

  • Maternal child health and family services
  • Youth services, in partnership with Drummond Street
  • Ageing and inclusion services
  • Large community function spaces
  • Meeting rooms
  • A commercial kitchen
  • Other services and spaces to be determined through community engagement.

Activities and programs currently run at the Jean McKendry Neighbourhood Centre and Hotham Hub will be relocated to nearby facilities during construction, and replaced in the new community centre.

Council is also investigating options for open space and recreation facilities on the Melrose Street site and on other Council-owned sites in the neighbourhood, as well as the future redevelopment of recreation facilities in North Melbourne.

If endorsed, community consultation will run from Wednesday 16 August to Friday 22 September. Council will host a range of engagement activities, including stakeholder and community workshops, and pop-up sessions. For more information, visit Participate Melbourne.

It will build on significant previous community engagement, and inform planning and draft designs for the new centre – which will be shared with the community for further feedback next year.

Construction is expected to commence in the next 18 to 24 months – subject to relevant approvals.