Strathmore Children’s Centre
Have your say on the combined planning scheme amendment and planning
permit application
Council is seeking feedback on its proposal to undertake stage two of the
Strathmore Children’s Centre project, which will include a new dual kindergarten
with a landscaped children’s play area and a family room.
What’s happened so far?
Council is committed to providing local families and children with high quality
early years services that strengthen their ability to live, learn, discover and grow.
Key to this is investing in the continued improvement of our early years facilities,
and where appropriate, moving towards an integrated service model.
In 2011 Strathmore was identified as a prime location for an integrated facility. In
December 2012 the new Strathmore Children’s Centre (stage one) was officially
opened in Loeman Street, Strathmore. Currently around 160 local families
access childcare and integrated kindergarten services at the centre, and around
600 families access Maternal and Child Health Services.
Why go integrated?
An integrated early years services model is where a range of complementary
services are made available within the one facility.
The Department of Education and Early Childhood Development have found
some of the positive outcomes of an integrated approach include improved family
engagement, streamlined service delivery and improved assessment of
children’s health and development.
As well as being more convenient for families, the integrated model also allows
for increased collaboration between services, to better address and support the
needs of children and their families.
What’s happening now?
Council is pleased to announce that we are now starting stage two of the
Strathmore Children’s Centre project. This will expand the integrated services
currently available at the centre; adding a new single storey, dual kindergarten
with a landscaped children’s play area and a family room that can be used for
new mothers’ groups and parent meetings.
Stage two is proposed to be built on vacant land owned by Council at 1-5 Term
Street, Strathmore, at the rear of the Strathmore Children’s Centre building. The
site is currently covered by a restrictive covenant, which states that only single
residential dwellings can be built on the land. Please see further on for
information on restrictive covenants.
At the Ordinary Meeting held on 25 November 2014, Council decided to
undertake a planning scheme amendment (Amendment C150) to vary the
restrictive covenant, combined with a planning permit application for the
proposed kindergarten.
Council is now seeking community feedback on its proposal to vary the restrictive
covenant, as well as the planning permit application for the new kindergarten.
What exactly is Council applying for?
Council is seeking to vary (not remove) the restrictive covenant that currently
applies to the parcel of land at the rear of Strathmore Children’s Centre, via a
planning scheme amendment (Amendment C150). The proposed variation would
`allow development for uses associated with a childcare centre consistent with
the definitions in the Moonee Valley Planning Scheme’ which includes the
proposed new kindergarten. The restrictive covenant will still apply to the land,
and any future development that deviates from the kindergarten would need to
meet the requirements of the covenant.
The proposed variation will only apply to the land on which Council intends to
build stage two of Strathmore Children’s Centre - all other properties covered by
the covenant will retain their existing restrictions. Please see over the page for
the full list of restrictions.
Through the combined process, Council has also applied for a planning permit to
allow us to develop and use the parcel of land for a new 66 place dual
kindergarten with a landscaped children’s play area and family room.
The full amendment documents and planning permit application can be viewed
online at mvcc.vic.gov.au/strathmorecc
Why combine these applications?
Rather than ask the community to give their feedback through two separate
processes, Council decided to combine the amendment process with the
planning permit application to allow residents to consider both items at the same
time. Additionally, the proposed variation of the restrictive covenant will be tied to
the proposal to develop the site for a kindergarten, so the covenant would not be
varied if the planning permit is not granted and vice versa.
Why has Council endorsed draft conditions for the
planning permit?
One of the requirements of the combined planning permit and amendment
process is that Council provides draft permit conditions. These conditions are
available to view and comment on during the consultation period.
What is a restrictive covenant?
A restrictive covenant is a private written agreement between landowners to
restrict the use or development of land for the benefit of other land. Restrictive
covenants are most commonly applied when a developer subdivides land for sale
and wishes to apply some restrictions on the use and development of the lots to
benefit or protect other land. A covenant that limits the use and development of a
lot to a single house is a common type of restrictive covenant. Covenants that
restrict the type of building materials that can be used for new buildings and
fences are also common.
What does this particular covenant restrict?
The covenant was applied in November 1944 and restricts the following:

Quarrying operations except for the purpose of laying foundations of any
building.

Roof or any of its exterior walls of iron or metal of any description of any
material which shall be an imitation or substitute.

Construction of any shop factory warehouse or other premises for use or
suitable for use for the purposes of manufacturing vending or exhibiting for
sale of goods or merchandise of any description.

Not for any other purpose than that of a residence.

No trade or other sign shall be displayed or caused or allowed to be
displayed.

No more than one dwelling house on any one lot.

Any dwelling including fences and outbuildings cost no more than four
hundred pounds.

Shall be erected to have frontage to the road.

Setback a distance of at least 30 feet.
What’s a planning scheme amendment?
A planning scheme is a statutory device or an official tool for the State
Government and councils to use to ensure consistency in the way land is used
and developed across Victoria. Each council area has its own specific planning
scheme.
A planning scheme amendment is when there is a change or update to the
planning scheme. A formal amendment process is required every time Council
wishes to make a change to its planning scheme. This is driven by State
Government legislation within the framework of the Planning and Environment
Act 1987.
The bigger picture - Loeman Street Precinct Plan
The community precinct in Loeman Street is a significant destination for locals.
The precinct currently provides both formal and informal leisure activities and
community support services for residents. These include tennis and lawn bowls
facilities, a theatre group, kindergarten, Maternal and Child Health Services,
childcare and a community park and playground.
Over recent years Council, in partnership with a stakeholder reference group,
has developed a strategic plan for improving the precinct to ensure it meets the
needs of the community now and into the future. These plans were finalised in
2013, following community consultation.
Plans for the precinct include:

two reconfigured eight rink bowling greens

two additional tennis courts

provision of additional open space

provision of additional car parking

provision of a new kindergarten (which is the proposed Strathmore
Children’s Centre stage two)
You can view further details about the community precinct online at
mvcc.vic.gov.au/loeman
How can I submit my feedback?
We are now seeking feedback on the combined planning scheme amendment
and planning permit application.
Please address submissions to:

termstreet@mvcc.vic.gov.au

Strategic Planning Department, Moonee Valley City Council, PO Box 126,
Moonee Ponds VIC 3039
Submissions will close at 5pm on Friday, 13 March 2015.
Information session
We’re holding an information session to give residents a better understanding of:

our proposed variation to the restrictive covenant and the planning
scheme amendment process

our plans for stage two of the Strathmore Children’s Centre project and
the planning permit application

how to have your say on the proposal
Date: Thursday, 26 February 2015
Time: 7pm
Venue: Strathmore Children’s Centre, 40 Loeman Street, Strathmore
Please RSVP to termstreet@mvcc.vic.gov.au or 9243 1604 by Thursday, 19
February.
What happens after consultation?
Following this consultation period, any submissions received will be referred to
an independent panel for assessment. The purpose of the panel is to provide an
independent assessment of the amendment, planning permit application and any
submissions received. A panel report will be provided to Council for
consideration.
After considering the panel report, Council will determine whether it wishes to
adopt the amendment and planning permit. Council must take the
recommendations of the panel into consideration when making its decision. If
Council decides to adopt the amendment, the amendment and planning permit
application will then be taken to the Minister for Planning for a final decision. If
the permit is successful, the Minister for Planning will then direct Council (as the
responsible authority) to issue the planning permit.
Where can I get further information?

A full copy of the amendment documents and planning permit application
is available for viewing at the Moonee Valley Civic Centre, 9 Kellaway
Avenue, Moonee Ponds and at Strathmore Children’s Centre, 40 Loeman
Street, Strathmore.

The amendment documents and planning permit application can be
viewed on the Department of Transport, Planning and Local Infrastructure
website at dtpli.vic.gov.au/publicinspection and on Council’s website at
mvcc.vic.gov.au/strathmorecc

Frequently asked questions and answers can be found online at
mvcc.vic.gov.au/strathmorecc