COASTAL ACTION Geography Action Week - 1998

Redeveloping the metropolitan foreshore of Port Phillip Bay

While campaigning for re-election to Government on Victoria the Liberal Party (see link below) made many commitments to the redevelopment and care of Port Phillip bay. Some of these are quoted here.

create and implement Victoria's first Coastal Strategy;

act on the recommendations of the $12 million Port Phillip Bay Environmental Study, due to be completed for the State Government by the CSIRO in June 1996;

end scallop dredging in Port Phillip Bay;


review the practices of fish netting and long lining in Port Phillip Bay in the context of the Land Conservation Council's Marine and Coastal Special Investigation;


protect and renourish the fragile coastal environment with a special grant of $8.9M for long overdue beach protection works;


refuse any applications for sandmining in the Bay;


enhance the Bay as a recreational asset by progressively creating a continuous Bay Trail for walkers, cyclists and joggers from Portsea around to Queenscliff;


prevent pollution of the Bay by implementing the first comprehensive, integrated management plan for the Bay's catchment area.

The Melbourne coast, beaches and waters have always been used for recreation as well as the commercial pursuits of shipping and fishing. The activity in the late 1990s was undertaken to revitalize the coastal region. A few photographs, old and new, are included on this page to illustrate some of the activities and rehabilitation. Many other new functions, such as the massive sports stadium, are not shown here.

St Kilda Sea Baths, (date unknown)	Esplanade, St Kilda - (late 1920s)
St Kilda Pier - 1998	Eastern Beach Promenade, Geelong - 1940s

Normal functions of the docks area of Port Phillip Bay includes shipping.

Port of Melbourne The dock for the ferry from Tasmania. Previously a very busy dock for ocean liners.	Ship leaving port, Port Philip Bay

There has been considerable building activity in the Docklands of Melbourne. With the demise, or change, of the shipping around the world the old docks have attracted new functions. Office blocks, sports facilities, entertainment and residential functions have been common responses in such places as London, New York, Darling Harbour (Sydney) and now in Melbourne.

The photographs below show some of the activities being attracted to the Docklands.

Port of Melbourne Building activity at Beacon Cove.	A hotel, apartments, Rolls Royce and the CBD in the near background.

(Colour photography, Roger Smith. Some old photographs available from The Age archives.)

A report in The Age (Friday 7 August 1998, News page 3) drew attention to a conflict over who should control the newly developed Docklands area. The Melbourne City Mayor is concerned that the State Government might give control of the redeveloped area to a new City Corporation or some other form of governance. Among points made by the Lord Mayor, Cr Ivan Deveson, were the following:

"A transitional strategy that shifts the role of governance from the developers back to the City of Melbourne could make a lot of sense. The developers do the development, and the City of Melbourne provides the governance," Cr Deveson said.

Creation of a separate city would only intensify competition for dwindling investment dollars.

"We've put a lot of work into marketing the Melbourne brand, as it were, and we've had good results ... The best way to continue that work is to ensure Docklands remains a part of the marketing package we can offer offshore investors and not an outfit we'll be going head-to-head with for investment," he said.

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He said the Docklands was not just about corporations and commerce - future residents would have democratic rights.

"A high-tech urban environment should never become an excuse for abolishing the inalienable right to democratic representation.

"Do we want to have, on one side of Spencer Street, a CBD with people, cars, business, commerce, and on the other side of the street, a private enclave of body corporates, private residential fortresses and no-go zones for the general public?"

Cr Deveson said the Docklands was the most exciting project in the history of Victoria, if not Australia.

"For Melbourne, it's a vital bridge between our current status as an important city somewhere at the margins of the Asia-Pacific, and our aspirations to be the smart place in the region for new industry, innovative design and quality lifestyle," Cr Deveson said.

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Other people are concerned that this redevelopment will change property values so much that the original residents will no longer be able to afford to live in the region. The concentration of expensive cars, high rent apartments and facilities like sports/gymnasia/club complexes are already an indicator of a significant change to a higher economic demographic group.

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