Medium density housing in Melbourne: the management of sustainable and democratic local communities under global pressure for increased urban efficiencies

This paper presents a study – currently still in progress – of the process of redevelopment at higher densities of an inner-metropolitan area of Melbourne hitherto characterised by low density detached housing. Policies of urban consolidation have, for better or worse, been in place in Australia’s capital cities for some time. They have been controversial, but of the alleged benefits by far the most frequently cited are those which appeal to notions of “sustainability”. As part of the ongoing implementation of urban consolidation initiatives, the development of medium density housing wherever it proves economically viable has been cast in the role of improving the sustainability of the urban environment in Australia. Whether or not this outcome can actually be observed to be taking place, medium density residential development has been a deeply divisive issue; highlighting the tensions and trade-offs between economic development, democracy and community which are largely ignored by existing approaches to urban governance; and straining existing systems for managing urban change and development. While a nexus between urban density and sustainability is widely believed to exist, the apparent focus on “sustainability” in recent Australian planning policy may in fact cloud the real issues which continue to have significant implications for local communities and democratic processes. Understanding conflict over medium density housing development is thus central to contemporary debates concerning the roles of both planning and local government in Australia.