Melbourne Economic Development Plan Goes Public

An economic strategy that will shape the future of the City of Melbourne is moving into the public consultation phase.

The council’s planning committee at its meeting on Tuesday (April 15) endorsed the next step for its draft economic development strategy 2025-2029. 

In February last year the city’s Future Melbourne Committee asked its planning officers to create a new strategythat could be adopted by June 30, 2025. 

The current strategy has been in place since 2021 and requires updating post-pandemic. 

The draft strategy has three objectives for repositioning Melbourne’s economy: setting the 38sq km of the city up as a global centre for innovation, attracting the world’s best minds to the city, and making it come alive and active. 

It also includes ongoing work on safety and amenity within the city and is intended to help guide development over the next decade.

Knowledge-related activity accounts for two-thirds of the total economic output in Melbourne CBD and is a major employer for the city’s 622,000 workers.

Economic growth has averaged 5 per cent each year for the past two decades.  The finance, professional services and computer systems industries contributed almost half of the growth for that period.

Almost 90 per cent of the CBD’s workforce lives outside it—including at Merri-bek (29,985 or 6 per cent), Wyndham (28,928, 6 per cent), Boroondara (23,267, 5 per cent), Yarra (21,467, 4 per cent) and Port Phillip (20,818, 4 per cent).

The City of Melbourne’s contribution to Victoria’s gross state product is around 22 per cent.

“We can’t just grow in raw terms but in per capita terms, we must become a stronger, healthier and more prosperous city,” City of Melbourne lord mayor Nicholas Reece told the meeting.

“We account for almost 7 per cent of the gross domestic product of Australia. 

“So if we get the economy of the City of Melbourne firing, we can make a great contribution to our national economy, and of course, to the people.”

▲ City of Melbourne Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece said an economic development strategy allowed Melbourne to contribute to the economy.

A focus on the innovation sectors of life-sciences, climate technology, education technology, sporting technology and digital games is part of the draft strategy. 

“We’ve got growth in the clean tech sector, where there is so much investment going at the moment, and there is nothing holding us back from being the Southern Hemisphere’s Boston other than our attitudes and growth in that sector,” city councillor Dr Owen Guest said.

There is also be a focus on inclusion, diversity and culture and on precincts and new infrastructure projects—such as the five new Metro train stations, the $1.7-billion The Fox: NGV Contemporary addition to the Melbourne Arts Precinct, and the Airport Rail Link.

Implementation options and initiatives referencing other strategic directions around inclusion and metrics will be included in the revised draft strategy after city councillor Dr Olivia Ball raised concerns. 

The draft strategy will be released for public comment for 28 days and a revised strategy will be then presented to the council at its June 24 meeting.

The council will then decide whether to revise the strategy further or endorse it.

Public consultation will be held between April 16 and May 13 through Participate Melbourne. 

There are 41 actions in the current long-term strategy—11 are completed and eight transitioned to usual business of the council. The remainder have been incorporated in the new strategy. 

Funding for initiatives within the final strategy will be decided through the usual council processes and budget planning. 

A cross-sector advisory group will be set up to help guide implementing initiatives created out of the strategy.