Hume City Council has prepared the Emerging Issues and Options paper as part of the Rural Hume Integrated Growth Area Plan (Rural HIGAP). The Emerging Issues and Options paper discusses a wide range of issues affecting the rural areas and provides a number of options to address these issues.

BackgroundThe Emerging Issues and Options Paper builds on background studies and a community survey undertaken by Council in 2017. It analyses key issues in the rural areas and suggests a number of options on how these issues could be addressed.

The options developed represent a sliding scale of change from doing more, keeping things as they are or doing less. Council is seeking feedback to gauge the communities preferred direction for change.

Community input on the Emerging Issues and Options Paper will contribute towards the development of the draft Rural HIGAP Strategy.

The approach to each option is represented as:

Wind down approach

Business as usual approach

Proactive approach

Emerging Issues and Options Papers

Background studies

Development of draft strategies

Final Strategy

Community survey

Community consultation Current Stage

Community consultation

1

2

3

4

For more information please visit

www.hume.vic.gov.au facebook twitter pinterest

View the Emerging Issues & Options Paper

Electronic copies of the factsheet and Emerging Issues and Options Paper can be viewed at:

www.hume.vic.gov.au/ruralhigap

Printed copies are available for viewing during office hours at Hume City Council offices:

■Broadmeadows Office, 1079 Pascoe Vale Road, Broadmeadows

■Craigieburn Office, 75-95 Central Park Avenue, Craigieburn

■Sunbury Office, 40 Macedon Street, Sunbury

Make a submissionBy 27 August 2018

Send your submission to:

By post: Strategic Planning Department Hume City Council PO BOX 119 Dallas VIC 3047

By email: contactus@hume.vic.gov.au (include Strategic Planning in subject line)

If you would like to provide feedback and stay informed on the project stages, please include your contact details as part of your feedback.

For more informationContact Council’s Strategic Planning department on 9205 2371 or via email contactus@hume.vic.gov.au

How can you find out more & have your say?Questions to consider in your submission:1.Are the issues facing the rural areas

adequately addressed in the EmergingIssues and Options Paper? If not, what ismissing?

2.What issue(s) are you addressing?

3.Out of the issues that interest you, considerthe options and let us know:

a.Which one(s) you prefer.

b.Which one(s) to avoid/exclude?

c.How can they be improved?

d.Are there any other options that youwould like to be considered?

4.What is your dream for the Rural Areas?

HUME CITY COUNCILRURAL AREAS Hume Integrated Growth Area Plan (HIGAP) Fact Sheet

ISSUES OPTIONS

Overarching Challenges Approach: Wind-down activity Business as usual Proactive approach

Melbourne Airport Melbourne airport is one of Victoria’s key strategic assets and economic drivers. The rural areas help to safeguard the current role and operation of the airport, particularly its curfew free status.

Ensure that land use and development protects the airport’s curfew free status and is compatible with the operation of Melbourne Airport in accordance with the Melbourne Airport Master Plan.

Explore potential for tourism and business opportunities within the rural areas that support the airport.

Climate Change Haphazard and extreme weather conditions as a result of climate change are likely to have a detrimental impact on biodiversity and land use.

Continue to support rural landowners through agricultural programs (Caring for our Rural Environment and the Agricultural Land rebate).

Explore the viability of alternative agriculture and land uses in response to anticipated climate change, and how Council can support them.

Pressures on Green Wedge Areas Green wedge areas face pressure to be included within the Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) and be developed for urban uses, experiencing agricultural decline or change and poor land management as a result of urban influence and land speculation.

Maintain the rural areas as they currently are.

Recognise that Hume’s rural areas are dynamic and will experience change.

Manage change in a proactive and sustainable way to conserve the values of the rural areas.

Landowner Expectations Expectations to be able to subdivide and develop rural properties has been a prevalent expectation of landholders partly driven by significant expansion of the UGB, difficulties of viable farming and proximity to a ready market for urban or hobby farm lots.

Maintain the existing statutory and policy controls.

Provide clarity on the long-term role and associated opportunities for the rural areas, to manage expectations and reduce speculation.

Explore changes to the statutory and policy to allow new opportunities and activities in the rural areas.

Urban Growth Boundary Proximity to the UGB and metropolitan Melbourne has resulted in greater pressure to include the rural areas within the UGB and develop them for urban purposes. Plan Melbourne 2017-2050 has committed the State Government to locking a permanent UGB, any changes to the UGB must be approved by the Minister for Planning and both houses of State Parliament.

Recognise the current UGB as a fixed boundary. Develop criteria to advocate for change to the UGB, reflective of the criteria within Hume HIGAP and either:

a) React to State Government processes; or

b) Proactively advocate to State Government.

Agriculture

Broad acre cropping and grazing activities in a number of locations appear to be in decline. Proximity to the Melbourne Wholesale, Fruit, Vegetable and Flower Market in Epping provides an opportunity to establish more intensive horticulture activities. There are opportunities to further promote and market the rural area’s established viticulture activities.

Established equine uses, plus the rural areas proximity and accessibility to metropolitan Melbourne, key thoroughbred racing locations and regional Victoria via the Hume and Calder Freeways, provides an opportunity to further promote and encourage equine uses. Opportunities to support existing, emerging and innovative agricultural activities.

Manage the status quo by supporting existing operations and sectors.

Explore opportunities in suitable locations to assist and enhance existing operations as well as foster emerging agricultural uses.

Manage agriculture as a non-viable activity that will continue to decline in productive output and function more as a hobby or secondary project for landholders.

Living and Visiting

Living Housing in the rural areas is either on agricultural properties or within clusters of small lot (2-10ha) subdivisions.

Further small lot subdivision is prohibited due to current planning controls.

Continue to allow housing only under current planning controls.

Investigate opportunities to create smaller lots by subdivision of existing 6 – 10 hectare lots in suitable locations.

Investigate potential areas for rural living cluster subdivision containing smaller lot sizes in suitable locations.

Bulla Township Opportunities for Bulla Township to capitalise on the existing mixed use business uses along Sunbury Road as well as the public areas and historical sites within the Township.

Maintain existing uses in the Township.

Prepare a structure plan or equivalent for the Township that explores the integrated development concentration of commercial activity, housing density, pedestrian links and open space.

Visitor Economy The proximity to the Melbourne Airport, metropolitan Melbourne and parts of regional Victoria, combined with the rural area’s significant natural values and visual landscapes, provides opportunities to build visitor interest.

Continue to allow tourism opportunities under the current planning controls.

Explore potential for new tourism opportunities in the rural areas.

Increase Council’s role in promoting and supporting tourism, agriculture and events in the rural areas.

Infrastructure and Resources

Existing waste management and extractive industries serve the wider metropolitan area.

Amenity impacts of infrastructure and resource activity are a key consideration.

The high transmission powerlines may provide opportunities to explore renewable energy possibilities, such as solar farms.

Allow existing facilities to consolidate and expand on established sites only and protect these sites with appropriate buffers.

Manage an increase in facilities by supporting existing facilities, exploring sites for additional infrastructure facilities and planning for the needs of new and potential facilities (eg. road and energy needs).

Restrict expansion of existing and new facilities and quarries.

Movement

The highest traffic concentration and congestion occurs in the main rural arterials that form three ‘gateways’ into the area: Riddell Road (east of the Sunbury Town Centre), Melbourne Lancefield Road and the area surrounded by Somerton Road, Oaklands Road, Wildwood Road and Sunbury Road.

Three significant road projects to be delivered through the rural areas that will result in significant changes to the road network and access to the nearby rural properties: the Outer Metropolitan Ring Road, Bulla Bypass and the Airport Link.

Maintain the existing road infrastructure to its current width and standards.

Prepare a rural road strategy that defines the priority of future road planned projects to provide an advocacy basis to State and Federal governments.

In addition to planned road projects, explore the need for additional new road connections or upgrades.

Environment

Biodiversity is prevalent throughout the rural areas in woodlands, grasslands and along waterways on private and public land.

Land management is impacted by low rainfall, risk of fire and pest plants and animals.

Adjoining activity impacts on water quality of waterways through sediment and nutrient export as a result of agricultural activities, illegal filling and dumping and poor on-site waste management.

Maintain current support.

Develop additional programs and control mechanisms.

Explore new mechanisms to protect landscape, water, and biodiversity.

Reduce Council’s role in land management on non-Council land and require landowners to take a more proactive approach in land management.

Cultural and Landscape Values

The creeks of the rural area were important sources of food and shelter and the volcanic cones provided important look out vantages to the local Woiwurrung Aboriginal group living in the area prior to European settlement.

The rural area was settled by some of the first explorers and pastoralists arriving in Victoria in the 1830s and 1840s. The rural areas have a dramatic landscape and scenic quality with steeply incised river valley and flat plains punctuated by volcanic cones.

Maintain current conservation of areas of significant cultural, heritage and landscape values.

Identify and promote cultural and heritage landscape values.

Explore additional protection measures of significant landscape features utilising policy and statutory controls.

Hume City Council has prepared the Emerging Issues and Options paper as part of the Rural Hume Integrated Growth Area Plan (Rural HIGAP). The Emerging Issues and Options paper discusses a wide range of issues affecting the rural areas and provides a number of options to address these issues.

BackgroundThe Emerging Issues and Options Paper builds on background studies and a community survey undertaken by Council in 2017. It analyses key issues in the rural areas and suggests a number of options on how these issues could be addressed.

The options developed represent a sliding scale of change from doing more, keeping things as they are or doing less. Council is seeking feedback to gauge the communities preferred direction for change.

Community input on the Emerging Issues and Options Paper will contribute towards the development of the draft Rural HIGAP Strategy.

The approach to each option is represented as:

Wind down approach

Business as usual approach

Proactive approach

Emerging Issues and Options Papers

Background studies

Development of draft strategies

Final Strategy

Community survey

Community consultation Current Stage

Community consultation

1

2

3

4

For more information please visit

www.hume.vic.gov.au facebook twitter pinterest

View the Emerging Issues & Options Paper

Electronic copies of the factsheet and Emerging Issues and Options Paper can be viewed at:

www.hume.vic.gov.au/ruralhigap

Printed copies are available for viewing during office hours at Hume City Council offices:

■ Broadmeadows Office, 1079 Pascoe Vale Road, Broadmeadows

■ Craigieburn Office, 75-95 Central Park Avenue, Craigieburn

■ Sunbury Office, 40 Macedon Street, Sunbury

Make a submission By 27 August 2018

Send your submission to:

By post: Strategic Planning Department Hume City Council PO BOX 119 Dallas VIC 3047

By email: contactus@hume.vic.gov.au (include Strategic Planning in subject line)

If you would like to provide feedback and stay informed on the project stages, please include your contact details as part of your feedback.

For more information Contact Council’s Strategic Planning department on 9205 2371 or via email contactus@hume.vic.gov.au

How can you find out more & have your say?Questions to consider in your submission:1. Are the issues facing the rural areas

adequately addressed in the EmergingIssues and Options Paper? If not, what ismissing?

2. What issue(s) are you addressing?

3. Out of the issues that interest you, considerthe options and let us know:

a. Which one(s) you prefer.

b. Which one(s) to avoid/exclude?

c. How can they be improved?

d. Are there any other options that youwould like to be considered?

4. What is your dream for the Rural Areas?

HUME CITY COUNCILRURAL AREAS Hume Integrated Growth Area Plan (HIGAP) Fact Sheet