Draft boundaries revealed for rezoning around Melbourne’s major transport hubs

Victoria is calling on the community to give feedback on draft planning controls for housing along Melbourne’s busiest transport corridors. 

Following an initial round of consultation that launched in May 2025, the Victorian government has released draft plans with proposed heights and boundaries for new homes across 25 Train and Tram Zones.  

These zones are part of 50 activity centres, which are set to enable more than 300,000 homes close to transport, jobs and services by 2051.  

The first 25 zones are expected to deliver more homes in some of Melbourne’s busiest transport corridors. 

As part of the process, the Victorian government is considering where new homes should be built and what kind of homes are suitable for each area – as outlined in the draft plans.   

“We’re making this city fairer for workers and families. Too many people are locked out of suburbs where they want to live – and I’m on their side,” Victoria’s premier Jacinta Allan said. 

What the plans outline 

There are individual draft plans for each of the 25 activity centres. These plans specify proposed building heights for two sections within each centre: the core and catchment areas. 

The core refers to the central part of activity centres, which are the closest to transport corridors.  

In these areas, the plans allow for more homes in taller apartment buildings, with heights varying by location – some up to six storeys, others up to 16. 

Eligible buildings in core areas will be “deemed to comply” with planning rules and be exempt from VCAT review. Applications that exceed height boundaries won’t be eligible for the fast-tracked pathway and would go through a regular planning process.  

Catchment areas are within a 10-minute walk – about 800 metres – of public transport. These plans encourage more low-rise apartments and townhouses. 

In inner catchments (within a five-minute walk), the proposals limit buildings to four storeys, or six storeys on larger blocks of more than 1000sqm. 

Outer catchments (within a 10-minute walk from stations) also propose limits of three storeys or four storeys on those larger blocks.  

These limits set a maximum height allowance, meaning future developments can be built up to these heights but won’t necessarily be built to their maximum. 

With the draft maps now released and available to be viewed at Victoria’s state government website, a second round of community consultation will help determine the final heights and boundaries for the new planning controls. 

This will run through the rest of September and will close on October 19 2025, inviting public feedback on heights, setbacks and boundaries. 

Consultation for all 50 centres is expected to be complete by early 2026.  

Are you interested in the latest in buying and building new? Check out our New Homes section.  

The post Draft boundaries revealed for rezoning around Melbourne’s major transport hubs appeared first on realestate.com.au.