Melbourne’s northward march to Donnybrook had another piece of its puzzle approved by the state government last week.
A 488 hectare employment precinct, the base for an estimated 7930 new manufacturing, light industrial and retail jobs, has been given the go-ahead at Craigieburn North.
Victorian Planning Authority (VPA) chief executive Peter Seamer said the precinct would provide jobs to people in the city’s north.
“Melbourne is growing very rapidly, and these areas need industries and jobs,” he said.
The VPA has been developing plans for the new precinct for more than two years. It will be bordered by Donnybrook Road at its northern end, the Sydney-Melbourne railway line, Merri Creek and the proposed Amaroo Business Park on Amaroo Road.
The precinct will be developed over the next 20 years, with most of the site rezoned as industrial land, enabling start-ups of high-tech industries, as well as factories, warehouses and other specialist manufacturing sites.
Land in the northern part of the new precinct, which stretches as far north as Donnybrook’s residential subdivisions, will be made available for offices and specialist retail uses.
Brookville Drive, Amaroo Road and Summerhill Road will be upgraded, while an east-west bridge will be built across Merri Creek, linking the Hume Freeway to Donnybrook Road.
Mr Seamer said it had taken time to finalise plans, address environmental and biodiversity concerns and consult with Hume council, landowners and the Aboriginal community.
He said large areas of the precinct would be dedicated to conserving the habitat of the area’s protected growling grass frogs.
