• In short: Residents in two Melbourne suburbs are protesting state government housing plans
• What’s next? Knox council has asked the state government for a meeting to talk about reducing 145 new dwellings to 25

Outraged locals in two Melbourne suburbs have staged protests against two different state government housing projects.

Activists began a sit-in on Friday night at the Barak Beacon housing estate in Port Melbourne, which is currently being demolished as part of the state government’s $5.3 billion Big Housing Build.

Under current plans, the existing 89 homes on the site will be demolished to make room for 300-350 new homes by 2025/2026. 

The government has also earmarked a 10 per cent increase in social housing at the site.

The 89 homes have remained almost empty since March 31 of this year following a government notice for residents to vacate and be relocated. 

One resident, 68-year-old retiree Margaret Kelly, remains living at the site and is awaiting a decision from VCAT regarding her eviction.

“The government has refused to listen to a lot of people, not just here but on other housing estates,” Ms Kelly said.

Victorian Greens leader Samantha Ratnam attended the protest in solidarity with the activists, calling for an increase to the amount of public housing on the Barak Beacon site.

“We’ve deregulated public housing, we’ve outsourced it and we’ve privatised it,” she said.

“We can’t keep going down that road because those policy options have delivered the crisis that we’re in.”

Ms Ratnam said there would be no public housing at the site under the new plans, with the site to be split between private and community housing.

Under the government’s ground lease model, land at the site would be leased to a project group for 40 years, with the group responsible for building and maintaining housing at the site.

A state government spokesperson said the Greens were blocking upgrades to social housing that would make dwellings more energy efficient and cheaper. 

“We’re getting on and delivering more than 300 new homes at the site, which includes at least 10 per cent more social housing as well as a mixture of affordable and market rental housing, including some disability accommodation,” the spokesperson said.

“No land is being sold as part of the Barak Beacon redevelopment and the government will retain ownership of all new properties.”

The government confirmed that Barak Beacon residents who were relocated will be given the first right of return into new homes under the same rental price as when they left. 

Council and residents clash with government over school redevelopment

In Melbourne’s outer east, Boronia residents rallied outside a local shopping centre to protest a planned development at the Boronia Heights College site. 

The school, which has been closed since 2014, would be demolished to make way for 145 homes. 

The decision has drawn backlash from both residents and Knox council, who say the site is only suitable for 25 homes.

“What’s proposed is in stark contrast to the surrounding area, and there is a distinct lack of open space for a development that proposes to house so many people,” Knox mayor Marcia Timmers-Leitch said.

“Our concerns include the intensity of the development, a lack of information about social and affordable housing, the protection of habitat zones and vegetation, bushfire risks and drainage needed to manage increased stormwater run-off.”

The council was consulted by the state government on the development last year but Ms Timmers-Leitch said its recommendations had been “ignored”. 

She said the site was also unsuitable because it’s 3 kilometres from central Boronia, including the train station and retail. 

The ABC travelled to Boronia on Saturday and observed a bus stop less than a 10-minute walk from the proposed site, and a Woolworths supermarket about 2km away.

Ms Timmers-Leitch said she hoped Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny would take up Knox council’s requests for a meeting.

The government defended its plans for the Boronia site. 

“We know how important accessible and affordable housing is and that is why we need to use land we already have while protecting the natural environment and character of local neighbourhoods,” a spokesperson said.

The government understands its plans to be in-keeping with density requirements and in line with habitat and tree-density rules.

Boronia resident Morris Perry said the community felt it had been ignored by the government in favour of development and that residents were concerned about losing green space.

Opposition Leader John Pesutto said the government’s social and affordable housing policy was “in tatters”.

“We’ve only seen something like 74 net additional places to the social and affordable housing stock,” Mr Pesutto said.

“That’s not addressing the exploding waiting list.”