Who is impacted: 

A heritage overlay has been proposed for 36 individual places, 3 precincts and one group listing within Maroondah City Council, impacting approx. 75 homes, businesses, schools, halls and churches.  This has occurred in response to a municipal wide heritage study review and detailed information can be found in relation to this on the councils website: https://yoursay.maroondah.vic.gov.au/c148maro-municipal-wide-heritage-amendment

Why is this important?

Maintaining the character of our community is important and council has many ways in which it can do this, however it has instead chosen to implement a heritage overlay which unfortunately will have several unintended consequences that burden our community.

These include:

• Expensive repair and maintenance costs imposed on owners and families- Many of the houses in the proposed amendment are aging poorly. In particular, leaking roofs, poor structural integrity and cracked brickwork. Some of the key repairs that will improve the longevity of these homes such as replacing tiles with Colourbond or rendering brickwork are banned under this new overlay, forcing homeowners into much more expensive structural repairs. As many heritage features cannot be repaired with modern fittings or technology, many repairs will require expensive custom craftmanship. It should be noted that Council contributes no funds to heritage maintenance. All obligations are on the homeowner. For many homeowners, these repairs will be too expensive, unfortunately, delaying these vital repairs can often exacerbate future repair costs or result in the building falling into a state of disrepair. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Images: One of the homes nominated in the amendment for long term preservation.

• Difficulty modifying and updating homes - Under the amendment, homes cannot be modified to meet the needs of those who live there. In particular, changes cannot be made to the front of the building. Common upgrades to existing homes such as replacing front fences, enclosing a carport with a garage door, or building a veranda on the front of one’s property become practically impossible under this new overlay. This also includes updating safety railings to protect children, or installing ramps to provide wheelchair access. Changes which make front yards more usable are essentially banned under this overlay and given that front yards are a key piece of social infrastructure where we interact with our neighbours, the inability to improve them will be a major negative outcome for our community.
• Inability to make homes more energy efficient - the overlay in many instances, prevents new solar panels visible from the street from being installed, significantly impacting the ability of Maroondah residents to harness sustainable forms of energy and contributing to negative environmental impacts. As mentioned, many of the houses are aging poorly and aren’t close to meeting modern day building standards. Upgrading these homes to meet current best practice for energy efficiency can be difficult enough without the additional restrictions and prohibitive costs imposed by the heritage overlay. For many homeowners, the dream of an energy efficient home may become financially unviable with the heritage overlay in place.
• Exacerbation of the housing crisis due to a shortage of suitable family homes – it is vital that our housing supply is ably to be updated to meet the evolving needs of our families and community. Unfortunately, this heritage overlay may have the opposite effect; making extensions more expensive, time consuming and generally acting as a disincentive for change and development. A large portion of the houses listed in the heritage overlay are small and often unsuitable for the needs of growing families, particularly with the recent working from home requirements.
• Ongoing financial an emotional burden on families and businesses who have had the heritage controls imposed without adequate consultation- This policy impacts everyone differently. For some the financial and emotional costs of these proposed heritage controls are life changing. Consider those homeowners who have been preparing plans for their dream home over a number of years only to now have their proposals rejected, their plans crushed by the heritage overlay. Consider any local residents who have recently purchased with the intention of extending or renovating their home, being forced to abandon these plans, unable to afford the cost that the additional restrictions invoke, losing their stamp duty and sometimes significant property value in the process. 

In response to the proposed controls, owners of land proposed to be included in the Heritage Overlay were given the opportunity to make a submission to council. Of the submissions received by council 80% objected or did not support the amendment, citing numerous concerns including those listed above as well as:

• The infringement of property owners’ rights
• Economic and social impacts including financial hardship, negative impacts on property values, high insurance premiums, ongoing costs of permit applications
• Hindrance to future development plans and ensuring homes meet the needs of the owners/families.
• The poor condition of the buildings and houses that have design flaws and have been poorly constructed.
• The homes were not environmentally sustainable.
• The buildings had undergone alterations and changes that no longer rendered the property to have any heritage value.

Please sign the petition:

Members and residents of Maroondah Council, as your neighbours we are asking you for your help. Based on the strong objection to the proposed heritage controls from those who made submissions to council and the impacts listed above we suggest that the implementation of a heritage overlay is not in the best interest of the community nor the individual families affected. We are asking you to support us to send a clear message to council to abandon the planning scheme amendment.