On Urban Development and Residents' Responses

The Minister for Planning in Victoria has often stated publicly that Melbourne 2030 is about protecting the liveability of Melbourne by encouraging the right development in the right places. This is exactly what resident groups are trying to do. Residents groups are not against all developments. They are however, against inappropriate developments.
In an ideal world, there would not be any need for the establishment of Concerned Resident Groups or Action Groups to campaign against developments in order to protect the liveability of Melbourne.
However we do not live in an ideal world. Inappropriate planning proposals from developers in the misguided belief that they comply with Melbourne 2030 have raised the level of consciousness within the community to problems associated with Melbourne 2030.
There may come a time when residents feel so strongly about a particular issue, that they consider campaigning against what they consider to be a proposed inappropriate development in order to protect the liveability of their suburb. They may even consider forming a resident’s representative group to allow the campaign to be more effective.
Forming and working in a concerned resident group to campaign against a proposed inappropriate development will require considerable time and effort from all members.
The decision to form or join a resident group and undertake such a campaign should therefore not be taken lightly, and should only be made after consideration of a number of issues.

Residents wanting to be heard have to consider:
Firstly decide if they wish to embark on a campaign against a proposed development.
Secondly decide whether they want to establish a representative residents group to undertake the campaign
Thirdly, appreciate the tasks need to be done in order to maximize their chances of achieving a desired outcome.
Finally, to obtain advice on how best to undertake these tasks.

This advice is from the Wheelers Hill Action Group within Monash Council who are sharing their experiences with other interest groups.