By Colin MacGillivray
Mitchell Shire councillors toured housing estates across Melbourne’s north and west earlier this month, stopping at Beveridge for a sod turn at the shire’s newest development.
Mayor Bill Chisholm said councillors and council officials visited several sites to see ‘the good and the bad’ of housing estates to get a clearer idea of how they wanted development to proceed across the shire’s south.
Mitchell Shire’s population is set to explode, doubling to 90,000 people by 2030 and reaching 170,000 by 2040 according to council estimates.
Most of the population growth will be concentrated in the Wallan and Beveridge communities in the shire’s south.
Cr Chisholm helped officially kick off construction of the shire’s newest housing estate, Stockland Lyra, on June 3.
Stockland Lyra is a planned $555 million development set to feature more than 1400 homes, catering for about 4000 residents when built.
The 140-hectare community will feature new schools, community recreational facilities, constructed waterways and wetlands, and access to a proposed new Beveridge train station.
Civil works to prepare the site for new homes are underway, with the first buildings set to go up in mid-2023.
Cr Chisholm said it was important for council to secure agreements for community infrastructure with developers.
He said the construction of a Beveridge station was a big win for the municipality.
“The delivery of infrastructure is really critical. Beveridge Station will cover a big catchment, so it’s a great outcome for us,” he said.
“To have the schools and community infrastructure coming in as well is really pleasing.”
Cr Chisholm said council officials toured several sites to understand what aspects of development they favoured.
“We’re going to see some bad developments and some great developments and know where we want to go in the future to get the best outcomes for our communities,” he said.
Stockland senior development manager Jackie Kent said the company was invested in the success of Melbourne’s northern growth corridor, with other Stockland developments nearby including Cloverton at Kalkallo and Highlands at Craigeburn.
“There’s a lot going on within the northern growth corridor of Melbourne, but particularly within Mitchell Shire,” she said.
“It’s an exciting future and we look forward to working together with Mitchell Shire Council to build, develop and create this community here at Lyra.”
Ms Kent said interest in the Lyra development had been ‘astronomical’ since it went to market after Easter.
“We already have a number of customers who have purchased with Stockland and are looking forward to moving in here when the first home sites become available next year,” she said.
“Providing a diverse array or housing options is a big priority for us. Affordability is a key metric to make sure we’re providing Victorians with an opportunity to purchase their first home.”
Future residents Atikah Jamalludin and Abdul Wasay said the promise of future amenities attracted them to the development.
“There are heaps of great facilities nearby in Craigeburn as well as the proposed facilities in Lyra, so I’m looking forward to that,” Ms Jamalludin said.
“[The train station] going to be great for the commute to work.”
