Court dates, heritage and big builds: The fight over high-rise housing in Boroondara

Boroondara council is taking the State Government to the Supreme Court over the Planning Minister's approval of an 18-storey development in Kew.

It is the latest escalation in an ongoing fight over a fast-track planning program that bypasses councils and limits residents' input into major developments.

📍 What’s happening? Boroondara council is opposing three projects: a 16-storey, 78-dwelling mixed-use tower on Glenferrie Road in Hawthorn, a 76-dwelling apartment development across three buildings in Surrey Hills and four mixed-use towers up to 18 storeys on the former Leo’s Supermarket site in Kew.

🗓️ Fast-track pushback: Under the Development Facilitation Program (DFP), the Planning Minister is the final decision-maker on major developments, bypassing council planning processes and public consultation and committing to approving projects within four months.

• Boroondara council has recently criticised the DFP, arguing it threatens heritage, neighbourhood character and affordable housing outcomes.

🪧 Local reaction: Residents remain concerned, particularly about overshadowing.

Churchill Grove resident Anthony Day said the proposed Hawthorn development would leave his home facing a 12.5-metre wall just 1.5 metres from his rear boundary.

🎤 Parliamentary presentations: Speaking at a council meeting on Monday, Liberal Hawthorn MP John Pesutto urged the council to oppose the DFP "in the most emphatic position it possibly can", while Independent Kooyong MP Monique Ryan described one approval as "bewildering and confounding".

• 🗣️ “The incredibly brief period of consultation … speaks to the State Government's reluctance to involve communities in decision-making of this sort,” Ryan told the chamber.

❌ No appeal: The Hawthorn and Kew proposals are being assessed through the DFP, meaning the council can only make submissions and objecting residents cannot appeal through VCAT.

• The Minister has already approved the Kew project, prompting the council's Supreme Court challenge.

🏗️ Government response: A State Government spokesperson said the DFP was needed to deliver more housing close to transport, schools and jobs.

• “The status quo is not an option,” the spokesperson said. “We need to deliver more housing choice close to trains, trams, schools and jobs. Well-connected suburbs like Kew can't stay locked up forever.”

⏭️ What now? The council is now waiting to enter into Supreme Court proceedings to overturn the Kew approval, while decisions on the Hawthorn and Surrey Hills proposals now rest with the Planning Minister.

Thumbnail Image Credit: Alison Newman