Yarra Council suspends affordable worker apartments at Collingwood Town Hall

The City of Yarra voted unanimously to pause a plan for at least 50 low-rent apartments for local workers, citing insufficient funding and market conditions.

At a Tuesday night meeting, the City of Yarra council unanimously decided to stop work on a proposal to turn a Collingwood car park into an eight-storey building with at least 50 affordable rental apartments for workers in Abbotsford. A panel highlighted "significant funding and delivery constraints," and councillors stressed that the council would not use ratepayers' money for operating costs. The plan would have limited rents to 75 % of the local median for tenants employed within the municipality, but the council had only offered to lease a 2,000-square-metre site behind St Philip's Anglican Church, without guaranteeing further financing.

Staff concluded that the current funding landscape and lack of a clear state or federal mechanism made the model unviable. Council member Evangeline Aston said the council remains committed to affordable housing and will revisit the project if market conditions change. The Urban Development Institute of Australia warned of a growing feasibility gap for such developments, while the Community Housing Industry Association Victoria emphasized the need for consistent government funding to deliver council-led projects.