Planning approval for 408 new homes in Port Melbourne

Homes Victoria is delivering 408 modern and energy-efficient homes at the Barak Beacon site in Port Melbourne.

With planning approval now secured, this project will be delivered in collaboration with not-for-profit project partner, Building Communities.

Conveniently positioned close to transport, services, jobs and shops, these modern homes will provide a range of rental options, including social, affordable rental, market rental and Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA).

A mix of one, -, 2-, 3- and 4-bedroom homes will be delivered to suit a range of families and households, including former renters and people on the Victorian Housing Register.

The project will also increase social housing on the site by 46%.

In addition to the new homes, the project will introduce new indoor and outdoor communal spaces, such as landscaped open areas with a children’s playground, a community garden, and more than twice the number of trees than previously existed on the site.

There will also be a new café and spaces designated for a social enterprise to use, benefiting both residents and the wider community.

The environmentally sustainable homes are part of Homes Victoria’s innovative Ground Lease Model program and will replace 196 former social housing dwellings that were no longer fit-for-purpose. These all-electric homes will be less expensive to heat and cool, with a 5-star Green Star rating and 7-star NatHERS average rating.

The project is expected to be completed by late 2026. Community Housing Limited (CHL), one of Victoria’s leading not-for-profit housing organisations, will oversee the management of the new homes.

CHL – a member of the Building Communities consortium – will be situated on-site to support tenants, coordinate community development programs and supervise building operations and maintenance for the next 40 years.

New homes at Barak Beacon, Port Melbourne will be delivered under a Ground Lease Model, where Homes Victoria leases the land to project partner, Building Communities to finance, design, build, manage and maintain the new housing over a 40-year term.

This means that all the land will remain in public ownership. There will be no sale of public land.

Barak Beacon is one of 4 sites to be delivered under Homes Victoria’s Ground Lease Model 2 project – which will deliver 1,370 homes including 659 social homes, 182 affordable rental homes, 473 private rental homes and 56 Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) rental homes.

Early works, such as soil remediation and fence installation, have been underway since early 2024 to prepare the site for construction.

Now that planning approval has been obtained, construction of the new homes will begin later this year. The project is expected to be completed from late 2026.

Learn more and keep updated about the Barak Beacon, Port Melbourne project

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