Hamton Hawthorn Precinct Gains Ministerial Approval

Victorian premier Jacinta Allan and planning minister Sonya Kilkenny have announced that approval has been granted for the development plan for a residential project at Hawthorn.

Hamton Property Group filed the plans for the 1.62ha site at 442 Auburn Road, which will include 350 luxury apartments and open public space, next to a Big Housing Build project for 206 social housing and affordable housing apartments managed by Homes Victoria. 

Together, the two projects will create a 2.6ha precinct.

Hamton bought the site from the University of Melbourne for a reported $50 million in March 2022.

Settlement of that purchase is due in March 2024.

The University of Melbourne had used the site as its Hawthorn campus before deciding it was surplus to requirements.

It bought the site from the Hawthorn Institute of Education for $12.8 million in 2004. 

Rezoning for the site was approved in October 2023 with Hamton submitting plans through the Victorian Department of Transport and Planning’s new fast-track program, the Development Facilitation Program.

Woods Bagot designed the plans for Hamton, with six buildings that will vary in height from three to six storeys as per the new zoning requirements. 

Hamton has also agreed to deliver 10 per cent of the apartments as affordable housing for key workers including teachers at nearby schools such as Auburn South Primary School, Bialik College and Scotch College.

The project will target a 5 Star Green Star rating, 7 NatHers rating and a Climate Active certification as Net Zero.

▲ Victorian premier Jacinta Allan, Hamton founder Paul Hameister and Victorian planning minister Sonya Kilkenny at the former University of Melbourne's Hawthorn campus.

One-third of the site will be open public green space with many of the existing 100 trees retained and Hamton undertaking to plant 100 more trees on the site.

“There are around 100 existing trees onsite, of which only four are assessed as significant—meaning only those four would ordinarily be required to be retained under the planning scheme,” Hamton executive chairman Paul Hameister said.

“We are pleased that the minister agreed with our decision to retain the vast majority of existing trees, and we will take our commitment to greening the habitat even further by planting an additional 100 trees, to create a truly nature-based neighbourhood.”

Sales will begin in the third quarter of 2024 with construction scheduled to begin in mid-2025.

Hameister said that the Hawthorn area had an undersupply of housing, making the site the ideal location for such a project.

“This approval from the minister for planning enables the delivery of meaningful new housing supply in the popular inner east of Melbourne, where development opportunities of scale are non-existent and demand for high-quality residences continues to outstrip supply,” he said.

Charter Keck Cramer’s research into the apartments market in 2021 has shown that with 4500 new apartments needed in the area every year, the forecasted supply for 2024 onwards will fall short.

Only 1878 apartments are predicted to be in some stage of development in 2024 with numbers decreasing to 1048 apartments in 2025 and 758 in 2026.

The university plans to use the proceeds of the sale to help with the cost of the new Australian Institute for Infectious Disease at Parkville.

It is estimated to cost $650 million and will be developed in partnership with the state government.

Next door, construction is under way on the Big Housing Build project with Hayball as the architect.

The state government has invested $99.8 million into the project. 

“We know we need to build more homes,” Allan said. 

“This is exactly the sort of site that we need to see more homes being built on more quickly.

“And what a terrific site it is—it is well located, close to the city not just by car but with strong transport links and with good access to jobs and services.”