City plans unveiled

By Shaun Inguanzo
RESIDENTS will have detailed information this month on sweeping changes to be made to central Dandenong over the next 15 to 20 years.
VicUrban and the state’s Major Projects Minister Theo Theophanous are gearing up to launch the draft master plan of the $300 million Revitalising Central Dandenong project at the end of April.
An eight-week public consultation period will then be followed by a two-month review and tweaking of the document, before a final document is released in September.
The draft will focus on specific details and drawings of the proposed City Walk project, renovating Dandenong Train Station and the central Dandenong trade district.
VicUrban development director Michael King said a team of 15 VicUrban staff had already moved to a new permanent office within the City of Greater Dandenong’s Clow Street office block to begin detailed planning for the project.
Mr King and senior project manager Fiona De Preu said the project would inject life into Dandenong by providing “magnets” for private investment.
Mr King gave an example of an educational facility within central Dandenong that would require student accommodation.
The accommodation would increase residential demand, and the students would generate demand for a regular nightlife, and exciting shops, cafes and restaurants.
“With others coming in, the lights won’t go off at 6pm,” Mr King said in reference to a future nightlife in Dandenong.
Mr King said the master plan would not address valuation concerns of traders and property owners who would have to sell and relocate.
But he said VicUrban had finalised the number of properties it needed in central Dandenong, notified all owners, and was in the process of “sitting down with affected parties one-on-one”.
Once launched, the draft master plan will be available online and from the One Stop Shop at the Clow Street council offices, as well as other civic buildings.