After a long period of buck passing, inertia and gridlock, delays and disagreements, it seems like there is finally some progress on fixing the riverfront. Yarra Bend council approval for riverfront protection is the next step.

Council to respond to Glenvill

Glenvill is responsible for ‘handing back’ the area to the public after appropriate remediation and restoration. They have lodged development plans for the riverbank ‘River Park’ with Yarra Council.

Council, together with Melbourne Water, now have a fixed deadline to assess and decide on the proposal. If they don’t, Glenvill can go to VCAT to get a decision.

The developer’s application covered the new ‘River Park’ – the 280m by 30m section of riverbank on the northern side of the Yarra River between Chandler Highway Bridge and Alphington Swimming Pool.
The proposal includes

• Stabilisation works, mostly related to bank slumping caused by the rising water table associated with site clearing
• Contamination remediation, mostly due to decades of asbestos dumping in the south west of the site
• Landscaping & planting across the ‘River Park’ area

Community views are clear – What we Don’t Want

In August 2022, APMAG and the Yarra River Keeper’s Association (YRKA) held a community meeting at the Alphington Bowls Club to hear the community’s concerns and hopes for the riverfront. APMAG / YRKA laid out the community view to Council, State Government and Glenvill as three priority concerns

• Permanent damage to the riverbank – particularly ongoing erosion, slumping & tree death
• Poor asbestos clean up and inadequate remediation of contaminated areas, and
• The risk of over building and inappropriate development of the riverfront – ie jeopardizing the natural feel and unspoiled habitats with too much built form.

What we Do Want

APMAG also set out the community’s vision for what the community does want: remediation and development that’s consistent with the policies already in place .

• the Yarra River Protection (Wilip-gin Birrarung murron) Act 2017,
• the Yarra Strategic Plan (YSP) (Burndap Birrarung burndap umarkoo),
• the Healthy Waterways Strategy vision (a document which builds on the Yarra River 50-year Community Vision developed for the YSP).

Specifically, we called for remediation and development of the riverbank that:

• Is overwhelmingly natural, Keeping a “bushland feel” that emphasized the ecology and environment with lots of endemic / indigenous species planted to the development boundary (i.e the full 30m)
• Is physically and visually linked to the surrounding parks and walkways. It must be integrated cohesively with Alphington Park and Alphington Wetlands, to the grassy woodland river frontage to the west (below Coate Park), and visually link to the bushland immediately across the river
• Has a single meandering “organic” path made of soil or gravel, like the paths along the riverbank below Alphington Wetlands and Coate Park today.

What has Glenvill Proposed?

APMAG reviewed Glenvill’s planning application and met the developer to discuss it.
While we didn’t have an easy to understand 3D rendered images to review, the proposed restoration looks like makes progress towards what the community has called for.
APMAG still has has three primary concerns

* Very big retaining walls.
The steep riverbank (in the southwest corner in particular) means some retaining walls are inevitable. However the proposed retaining walls are up to 5 meters high.
This huge wall of concrete at the top of the escarpment will be visually overwhelming. A better solution can be achieved.

* Big elevated walkways.
The community submission specifically requested no visually dominating elevated walkways along the higher sections of riverfront along the development boundary.
The proposed elevated walkway still encroaches too far into the ‘River Park’ around the existing water tower area.

* Inconsistent weed management & planting
Planting upgrades are planned for one side of the path, and not the other, and so non-native plants on the south of the path & riverbank will not be removed or managed.
This also means the planting plan won’t address the areas of subsidence, where the path is slumping and eroding.

At the time of writing Council is assessing Glenvill’s application.
APMAG will continue to engage with Council and Glenvill. We will update members when further information (e.g 3D renderings of the development) becomes available or decisions are made by Council / Melbourne Water.

Parks Proposals Approved

Plans for the creation of three small parks within Yarra Bend have been given the green light. These parks have the potential to bring great benefits to the residents and visitors of Yarra Bend and Alphington.

While Glenvill will be responsible for the construction, the Council holds the ultimate authority and approval during the design phase. APMAG is actively engaging with the Council through Community Reference Group meetings to gather valuable community input and feedback regarding the parks.

Artisan Park

The Council has approved Glenvill’s documentation for Artisan Park, except for the construction management plan. Once that final piece gets the green light, work will commence, and Glenvill aims to have the park open by the end of 2023.

Heritage Park

APMAG has been informed that here have been changes made to early designs, with storm water management and swales now included to ensure surface water is effectively managed.

APMAG believes these changes are necessary and important, but it’s important to note that they may limit the use of open space. The impact depends on the final depth and steepness of the swale ditch, details that are currently unknown.

Retail / Commercial / Affordable Housing Precinct

The developer of Yarra Bend’s retail / commercial / affordable housing precinct (Time and Place) recently went to VCAT (Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal) to have its planning application approved.

Yarra Council had previously given their approval but specified that the permit would be issued subject to certain amendments and conditions.
Sadly, the application was submitted to VCAT without any amendments or conditions.

VCAT ruled in favour of Time and Place and the developer is now moving to the construction planning phase.

Time and Place estimate the project will take 33 months to complete, and they are working through the preplanning conditions and construction drawings.

APMAG understands that Coles remains the anchor tenant within the retail component of the development, but has downsized the footprint of its proposed supermarket.
Time and Place continues to work on finding a suitable partner for the affordable housing component of the development, which will be created under a ‘Build-to-Rent’ model.

Parkview Road

Glenvill is seeking a contractor to repair and rectify Parkview Road, but APMAG isn’t aware one has been selected or engaged.
Further landscaping is scheduled using plants currently growing out in the nursery. Glenvill hope to get the work completed before spring to give the plants the best start, but this will depend on selecting the contractor.