By Christine de Kock
CONTAINERS Out campaigner Michael Clarke says a report on the potential to rezone industrial land for residential use should be before the Maribyrnong City Council in July.
Cr Clarke, also the municipal mayor, began his campaign to “stop container yards springing up” in the City of Maribyrnong last October.
He believes that by reducing container sites in the municipality there would be a 30 per cent reduction in truck traffic.
Cr Clarke told Star last week that the council was working with the De Group’s plan to rezone the Bradmill site in Yarraville from industrial to residential.
“That is all progressing quite well at the moment,” he said.
“The next thing we have got to be doing is identifying other sites that really do lend themselves to being rezoned for residential use.”
He said council officers were discussing where such sites could be located in the municipality.
“We are really hopeful that by July we have identified all the sites in the city that really do lend themselves to being rezoned,” Cr Clarke said.
“It has to be land that is adjacent or abuts residential land that lends itself to being rezoned.”
He said that after a report was put together and was approved by council, he would ask the State Government to accept proposed changes.
“Really, the fact is we are one of the few municipalities, within literally walking distance of CBD Melbourne, that actually has the capacity to expand its population significantly,” Cr Clarke said, referring to the potential to convert industrial zones to residential.
Cr Clarke said at the time of launching Containers Out that the municipality had “large tracts of under-utilised industrial zoned land that can legally be used as container parks”.
“Unfortunately, it seems VCAT (the Victorian Administrative and Appeals Tribunal) has approved new container parks because our own rules allow them to,” he said.
He aimed to lobby the State Government to support changes to zoning and provide incentives for container companies to move out.
During the last election campaign the Labor Government backed Cr Clarke’s plan.
Premier Steve Bracks said in November: “Cr Clarke is suggesting a sensible and workable way to address around 30 per cent of truck traffic in the area.”
