10 // DELIVERY

10 //

DELIVERY

Delivering the Sybil Craig Quarter // Development Victoria as Coordinator

In section 2 of this plan (page 9) we discussed the high risk nature of developing the Maribyrnong Defence Site due to the high cost of remediation. We stated that private-public partnerships would mitigate the risk most successful because Federal and State Governments would be able to provide financial security in the early stages of the development. To deliver key infrastructure commitments crucial to the sites viability, such as public transport, private developers would deliver much of the housing, employment and 20-minute neighbourhood amenities. We believe 20-minute neighbourhood infrastructure needs to be delivered early to prevent undesirable habits, including car dependency, developing. This will require Federal and State Governments to provide much of the funding in the early stages of development, as developers traditionally do not provide 20-minute neighbourhood infrastructure until much later after revenue has been collected from completing residential developments. Governments will be able to recoup their initial expenditure in the later, residential and commercial heavy, construction stages.

This master plan has been prepared for the Victorian Planning Authority however they have no legal right to develop the site. We propose that Development Victoria will be in charge of coordinating the development of the site as they are the Victorian State Government development agency and have been responsible for a variety of similar projects including Docklands and the Fitzroy Gasworks (Development Victoria, n.d).

Development Victoria would be in charge of coordinating the delivery of the master plan, delivering public transport infrastructure, education and community infrastructure and some housing. Development Victoria would partner with and coordinate premium commercial real estate and residential developers to deliver a large proportion of the residential and commercial land. Development Victoria would also partner with and coordinate a variety of Affordable Housing organisations to deliver and maintain, in the long term, the affordable housing proposed for the site. A limited number of residential lots will be available for purchase and independent development subject to strict planning approval process.

Project Viability: Development Value > $400 million

Scenario A: Commonwealth sells land to developer as is Scenario B: Government(s) bares the costs and develop the site themselves

Developer bares clean up cost potentially resulting in no community benefits Greatest chance of maximising community benefits

Table 10.0 Remediation Scenarios reiterated

Scenario C: Public-private partnership between government, private developers and affordable housing provides

Given project scale, sharing the risk makes sense to deliver community benefits

Coordinate Delivery of the Sybil Craig Quarter

Build Residential

Build Commercial and Employment

Affordable and Crisis Housing

Table 10.1 Roles and Responsibilities

Development Victoria

Development Victoria Premium Residential Developers Limited number of local builders

Premium Commercial Developers Anchor institutions

Development Victoria Affordable Housing Organisations Premium Residential Developers

Figure 10.2 Construction staging of the Sybil Craig Quarter

Construction Staging //

Due to the sites’ large scale we have proposed four construction stages. The staging alternates development between less expensive, and expensive construction stages. The staging also ensures construction vehicles will not have to traverse existing or freshly developed residential areas.

Stage A

Is purposefully small so that it is minimally expensive. It will involve building residential and employment developments.These will accumulate revenue to support latter expensive stages.

Stage B

Stage B will involve a mix of residential, employment, commercial, green space and community facilities and will develop the core community facilities for the Quarter. Thus it will provide many aspects vital to 20 minute-neighbourhood functionality and thus we believe needs to be developed as early as possible.

Stage C

Stage C is another small stage. Involving predominantly housing.

Stage D

Whilst this stage provides a significant amount of revenue due to the large amount of residential and employment, it has to be completed last to prevent construction vehicles damaging established areas, and the core elements being implemented too late.

Project Timeline //

The project timeline below provides a rough outline of the expected duration of the contamination and development of the site. The entire project is estimated to last 20 years. The first years will require a continuation of the work that has been done for this draft PSP. Site remediation should be investigated alongside establishing partnerships and engaging with stakeholders. Once a final version of the PSP has been established, the construction of stage A can begin. The following pages will go into detail of each construction phase. Monitoring* - Also known as Construction monitoring is inspection that ensures that proposed construction is consistent with the funds that are being requested from VPA. It also verifies that work completed is consistent with plans and specifications. Environmental Evaluation* - Evaluation of environmental impacts during construction to identify the impact of construction on the environment and how to mitigate it in later stages.

Figure 10.3 Timeline development of the Sybil Craig Quarter

Stage Details // Decontamination Stage

Duration:

5 years

What will happen:

No work is planned to happen on site until all areas of the site have been decontaminated. Whilst decontaminating the entire site first will be a large upfront cost, we believe it will be the safest, most efficient option due to the extensive contamination which exists on the site. Whilst the actual decontamination plan will need to be developed by experts we envisage three options.

On-site decontamination: All decontamination processes will be undertaken on-site with minimal movements off contaminants off-site.

Off-site decontamination via road: Decontamination process will be split between on-site and off-site facilities. Road vehicles will be required to transport the material to the off-site processing facility however this is likely to have server negative consequences for the local residents because a significant number of truck movements will be required for up to 5 years. The West Gate Tunnel for example is predicted to require 460 truck movements each day to transport the contaminated soil away from the site (City of Melton, 2020).

Off-site decontamination via water: If off-site decontamination is deemed necessary, the Maribyrnong river could offer a viable alternative to road transport. Contaminated soil could be pumped into barges which are then sailed to either Melbourne Waters’ Western Treatment Plant or to the Department of Defences’ Point Wilson Explosives Area. Both locations are government land, away from residential areas and have direct access to Port Phillip Bay. Decontamination would then be undertaken at one of these locations. Bridge clearances would need to be investigated.

Utility Mains Upgrades: Whilst decontamination of the site occurs it will be possible for the utility mains which supply the Quarter to be increased in capacity because they are located outside of the site. Upgrading capacity is likely to be necessary as the redevelopment of the Quarter will result in a significant number of new dwellings and business needing reliable utility supply.

Key partners:

- Department of Defence as current owner of land, party responsible for contamination - Victorian Environmental Protection Authority as authority responsible for regulating hazardous materials and ensuring environmental and community safety - Melbourne Water are responsible for drinking water, sewerage and stormwater infrastructure - Jemena are responsible for electricity infrastructure in the region of our site.

Funding arrangements:

This stage is highly expensive and completing it correctly is critical to the long term success and viability of the Quarter. Federal Government and State Government will have to provide the $400 million remediation cost which will be recouped as the project is implemented.

Stage Details // Construction Stage A

Duration:

2 years

What will happen:

A small initial first stage designed to be done quickly and develop some financial resources through developing commercial and residential properties. Dwellings in this area will benefit from investment in the Maribyrnong Community Centre which is located on the eastern edge of the Stage and will act as the main Community Centre initially. A limited amount of employment land will also be developed so that those moving into the first stage benefit early from local employment. It is advised that an anchor institution or business is contracted to be implemented in Stage A to ensure a significant portion of the early employment is in well paying jobs with long term job security. A new protected bike lane will be provided linking Highpoint shopping centre to the Maribyrnong River to start making cycling a viable transport option early. A variety of trunks utilities lines will begin to be laid into the site.

Funding arrangements:

Mostly funded by revenue from buildings built during this stage. State Government could act as guarantor for developer finance. Anchor institutions will also be key funding source for the delivery of employment land.

Stage Details // Construction Stage B

Duration: 5-8 years

What will happen:

Stage B is the largest and most complicated stage to build. Stage B provides the many of the core elements required to have a 20-minute neighbourhood including the main neighbourhood activity centre, bring trams into the site, extending the employment, opening the first schools on the site and returning the river frontage to the public. Work would begin on the wetland structure on the north fringe of Stage B and regrading Stage C.

Funding arrangements:

Education and public transport infrastructure will be mostly funded by the State Government with minor contributions from developers. Anchor institution will be key to development of employment land. Residential land, neighbourhood activity centre, community centre, and green space will be funded by the revenue from residential and commercial development.

Stage Details // Construction Stage C

Duration:

2 years

What will happen:

This stage is a purposefully small and less intensive development given the preceding large, complex and expensive Stage B. Designed to be mostly residential to recoup money spent in Stage B A small Community Centre will be provided for this distinctive sub-region. Education will also be provided and a small shopping strip. The tram line will be completed through to the new lines built north of the Quarter thus connecting the site to the northern employment opportunities.

Funding arrangements:

Education infrastructure and public transport infrastructure will be mostly funded by the State Government. Residential land, neighbourhood activity centre green space will be funded by the revenue from residential and commercial development.

Stage Details // Construction Stage D

Duration:

2 years

What will happen:

The final development stage will contain residential development and the remainder of the STEM and employment hub. New education facilities will also be provided to cater for the significant number of dwellings in this stage. The final cross river link will also be built.

Funding arrangements:

Education and trails will be mostly funded by the State Government with minor contributions from developers. Anchor institution will be key to development of employment land. Residential land and green space will be funded by the revenue from residential and commercial development.

Project Stakeholders // Interest vs Influence

There will be a plethora of different stakeholders involved in the development of the Sybil Craig, each of whom have varying levels of interest and influence.

The diagram shown illustrates how government departments inclusive of the Department of Defence, DELWP, etc will have the most influence and interest in the project.

In juxtaposition, community service providers such as childcare and aged care providers will have the least level of influence and interest.