Every neighbourhood has its own unique character shaped by its streetscapes, buildings, parks and the way people move through them. Train and tram zone activity centre plans will help guide where new homes can go and what kind of homes are most suitable for each area.
These plans seek to include clear planning rules, such as building heights and setbacks, providing certainty for council, communities and developers alike.
We will follow an established process for developing planning controls for each train and tram zone activity centre. This includes looking at the existing buildings, how the land is currently used, transport links and infrastructure.
The plans for 10 activity centres that were part of the pilot program have now been finalised. For more information, visit the Activity Centres Pilot Program page.
Throughout 2025 and 2026, we’ll develop plans for a further 48 train and tram zone centres, plus two centres in inner Melbourne.
We expect the majority of train and tram zone activity centre plans will include a ‘core’ and a ‘catchment’ area. Some will also have ‘inner’ and ‘outer’ catchment area.
| Core | Inner catchment | Outer catchment |
|---|---|---|
| Various heights between six and twelve storeys in most centres, and up to sixteen storeys with potential for taller heights in some places in the larger centres | Up to four storeys, and up to six storeys on blocks larger than 1000m2 | Up to three storeys, and up to four storeys on blocks larger than 1000m2 |
The core is the central part of the train and tram zone activity centre, closest to public transport, jobs and services. This area is best suited to accommodate more homes.
As you move away from the commercial and community core of the train and tram zone activity centre, we expect that the proposed building heights will gradually decrease. This will allow a transition between the activity centre and the surrounding suburb.
There are two new planning tools that support the delivery of more homes in train and tram zone activity centres.
These will make it easier for councils and planning authorities to encourage more homes to be built close to public transport, jobs and services in their own municipalities, helping all levels of government play their part in delivering more homes for Victoria.
A new Built Form Overlay (BFO) has been developed to make planning controls in activity centre ‘cores’ clearer and more consistent across Melbourne.
The overlay determines building heights and design rules, and introduces a new streamlined planning pathway to allow more homes to be built faster. If an application is ‘deemed’ to comply’ with the BFO standards, it cannot be refused a permit on the basis of those standards.
The new Housing Choice and Transport Zone (HCTZ) has been developed to enable a diversity of housing in the catchments, and other well-serviced locations with convenient access to public transport, jobs and services. The HCTZ only applies to existing residentially zoned land.
Catchment areas are great places for the types of townhouses and smaller apartment buildings these reforms are designed to support.
Find out more about residential development provisions:
When we plan for more homes, we need to consider what else helps a community thrive. To ensure places remain vibrant and accessible, we need to plan new and upgraded infrastructure.
We’re introducing a simpler and more flexible infrastructure funding system, to help deliver the things that train and tram zone activity centres will need into the future.
The funding model, called infrastructure contribution plans (ICPs) is proposed to help deliver the essential infrastructure each centre needs to thrive, such as community services, education and transport infrastructure.
Under the new system, developers will pay a standardised contribution of $11,350 for each new home they deliver. They will also pay $114 per square metre of new commercial space or $57 per square metre of industrial space where developments are above a certain size.
Introducing ICPs ensures that developers benefiting from the opportunities for more homes in these activity centres contribute to upgrades and add to the infrastructure, so these centres remain great places to live as more people call them home.
The new funding program will make it easier for councils and the Victorian Government to provide the right infrastructure upgrades in the right places to help activity centres remain great places to live as more people call them home.
Councils will retain two-thirds of the funds for local infrastructure, and will pay one-third to the Victorian Government for state infrastructure. In cases where existing Developer Contribution Plans are in place, the payment for local infrastructure will be reduced.
Once an ICP is applied to a train and tram zone activity centre, the local council will decide exactly which projects to spend its contribution on via its own council budget and capital works program.
The ICP system has been used for the past decade to fund infrastructure for new communities in Melbourne’s growth areas, and has been adapted for train and tram zone activity centres following close consultation with councils and the development industry.
The new funding model will come into effect for the pilot 10 activity centres from 1 January 2027, and for the 48 Stage 1 and Stage 2 train and tram zone activity centres from July 2027.
The timing allows time for the development industry to prepare for the change, and to minimise impacts on the property market.
Throughout 2025 and 2026, we’ll consult on the below 48 train and train and tram zone activity centres. These are separated into two Stages (1 and 2). Each group is arranged into ‘clusters’ according to geographic location.
| Cluster | Station/Train and tram zone activity centre | Local Government Area (LGA) |
|---|---|---|
| Thornbury | Hight Street (Thornbury), St Georges Road (Thornbury) | Darebin |
| Heidelberg | Heidelberg | Banyule |
| Middle Footscray to Tottenham | Middle Footscray (Seddon), West Footscray, Tottenham (Braybrook - Central West) | Maribyrnong |
| Hawthorn, Glenferrie, Auburn and Kew Junction | Hawthorn, Glenferrie, Auburn, Kew Junction | Boroondara |
| Tooronga to Holmesglen | Tooronga (Malvern Village), Gardiner & Glen Eris, Darling, East Malvern, Holmesglen | Stonnington, Monash |
| Carnegie to Oakleigh | Carnegie, Murrumbeena, Hughesdale, Oakleigh | Glen Eira, Monash |
| North Brighton to Sandringham | North Brighton, Middle Brighton, Hampton, Sandringham | Bayside |
| Merri-bek | Brunswick Train and Tram Zone Activity Centre (Sydney Road), Coburg | Merri-bek |
| Station/Train and tram zone activity centre | Local Government Area (LGA) |
|---|---|
| Riversdale & Willison, Ashburton | Boroondara |
| Caulfield, Glen Huntly, Ormond, Bentleigh, Elsternwick | Glen Eira |
| Springvale, Noble Park, Yarraman, Dandenong | Greater Dandenong |
| Mentone | Kingston |
| South Yarra, Toorak, Hawksburn, Prahran, Windsor, Armadale, Malvern, Toorak Village | Stonnington |
| Blackburn, Nunawading, Mitcham | Whitehorse |
There are two phases of consultation for each stage of train and tram zone activity centres:
In Phase 1, we'll share program information and invite you to tell us about the places you love locally. We will not be sharing draft maps with proposed building heights and proposed core and catchment boundaries during this first phase of engagement.
In Phase 2, we’ll be back to show local communities draft maps that will form part of the plan for each centre. We’ll want to know if we’ve got the details right, or if there’s anything that we’ve missed.
Following Phase 2 consultation, we’ll report back and implement our plans (subject to approval by the Minister for Planning). We expect this process to take place:
For more information on our consultation program and how you can participate, visit Engage Victoria website.
Feedback provided during consultation periods on the Activity Centre Pilot Program in August 2024 is helping to shape planning for activity centres in Stages 1 and 2. See below for more:
We heard you want to see more homes, and different kinds of homes, close to public transport options and local infrastructure.
Our new planning controls, along with other housing initiatives, will help ensure a variety of housing to be built. These include through programs such as:
We heard that upgrading local infrastructure is important to support more homes, so we’re introducing a new funding mechanism to raise funds for new and upgraded local infrastructure.
For the 10 activity centres in the pilot program, this will come into effect in January 2027.
For the 48 train and tram zone activity centres in Stages 1 and 2, this will come into effect in July 2027.
We heard about the importance of preserving and protecting open space while we plan for more homes, so we’re proposing strong protections to limit overshadowing of parks, and new requirements to support tree planting on larger sites.
We are also delivering the $30 million Pick My Park Program, where communities will be able to share and vote for ideas for new and improved parks. For more information, visit Pick My Park.
We heard that Victorians want to see more homes in places that are well-serviced by public transport, so the expanded Tram and Train Zone Activity Centres Program focuses on creating capacity for more homes in places with the best access to trains and trams.
We heard about the importance of heritage in some activity centres, so the proposed planning controls consider existing heritage controls
There will be no changes to heritage overlays, or amendments to local or state planning policies relating to heritage, as part of the program.
Page last updated: 03/12/25
