Design for first public housing towers to be demolished

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Design for first public housing towers to be demolished

Designs for the first of Melbourne’s 44 public housing towers to be demolished and rebuilt have been revealed as some residents continue to ****** the plans.

Premier Jacinta Allan and Housing Minister Harriet Shing visited the abandoned red-brick towers at Elgin Street in Carlton on Thursday to unveil the concept designs.

The 17-storey towers were built in the 1960s and all 196 dwellings have been empty since 2022 after their sewerage system *******, with the state government insisting the buildings cannot be retrofitted.

Ms Shing said the designs would deliver 248 homes with private balconies across two buildings spanning 16 and 18 storeys – a 26 per cent increase in housing stock.

“This entire development, 248 homes, will be public housing,” she told reporters.

Former residents of the towers will be invited to return once construction on the federally funded project is complete in 2028.

The designs include four bedroom and five bedroom homes to accommodate larger families following community feedback.

Other features are improved accessibility, reverse-cycle heating and cooling, ceiling fans, a laundry in each apartment, double-glazed windows and modern kitchens.

Early demolition works have started at the site, with the next stage to start in early 2025.

“This isn’t a demolition as far as a wrecking-ball situation,” Mr Shing said.

“The configuration of the buildings themselves mean we’ll actually dismantle them.”

All 44 of Melbourne’s high-rise public housing estates are set to be pulled down and redeveloped by 2051 under a plan announced by former premier Daniel Andrews in September 2023.

A class action claims Homes Victoria did not properly consider the residents’ human rights before deciding to demolish the towers in Carlton, Flemington and North Melbourne.

The trial began in late October but was quickly delayed as the parties fought for secret cabinet documents to be produced.

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