Bell/Bardia and Tarakan Estates, Heidelberg West

The Bell/Bardia and Tarakan estates in Heidelberg West are 10 kilometres from the CBD in the City of Banyule. The estates are close to transport, education facilities, employment, support services and shopping areas. The buildings on the site, known as 'walk-ups', were built in the 1950s and no longer suit the needs of many residents.

The Heidelberg West project is one of eleven identified to be renewed in Stage One of the Public Housing Renewal Program.

The new homes will be modern and accessible, safe, secure and energy efficient, and built to meet the needs of tenants today and into the future. The redevelopment will also include private housing, which will help fund the project and create more diverse communities.

Address

20 Tarakan Street, Heidelberg West, Victoria, Australia 3081

BENEFITS
Community benefits of the Bell/Bardia project include:
- a new a north-south open space corridor through the site linking Mulberry Parade with Bell Street
- new centrally-located open space areas
- well-lit communal open-spaces, containing many existing trees as possible and large enough for a range of activities
- as many trees as possible to be retained on the site and where removal is necessary, significant trees will be replaced on a two for one ratio.
Community benefits of the Tarakan project include:
- well-lit communal open-spaces, containing many existing trees as possible
- connections to the nearby St Pius Parish and Primary School open space and community garden.
- protection of the Mature Oak Tree near the western boundary of the St Pius X Environment Park
- design that will encourage and maximise lines of sight and safety
- as many trees as possible to be retained on the site and where removal is necessary, significant trees will be replaced on a two for one ratio.
TOWN PLANNING & CONSULTATION
In 2017, the Department of Health and Human Services undertook a town planning process (known as a Planning Scheme Amendment) to enable the site to be redeveloped.

This involved community consultation on an indicative design during the planning scheme amendment process. Refer to the engagement reports (Phase 1 and Phase 2) for more information about the consultation held in 2017.

More details about the Planning Scheme Amendment including the indicative designs process can be found on the Engage Victoria website.

As part of the this town planning process the Minister for Planning established the independent Social Housing Renewal Standing Advisory Committee to review and make recommendations on design parameters for the redevelopment, including matters such as building heights, setbacks and open space.

The Heidelberg West estates are one of six projects that have been referred to the Social Housing Renewal Standing Advisory Committee to date.
The Minister for Planning has carefully considered the Standing Advisory Committee’s recommendations and approved Planning Scheme Amendments C118 and C150 to the Banyule Planning Scheme.
Refer to the Project Overview for details the changes made as a direct response to residents’ and neighbour feedback, key elements of the amendment and next steps.
You can view the details of the amendment, the Social Housing Renewal Standing Advisory Committee report and other relevant documents at www.planning.vic.gov.au/shrp.
FURTHER INFORMATION
- Email to register for project updates or send your questions to housing.renewal@dhhs.vic.gov.au
- Call the Project Manager, Katrina Preski, on 0439 751 164
- Estate residents can talk to their local Relocationa Coordinator, Lucinda Jones, on 0448 231 387
- Information for estate residents about Relocations can be found here http://www.housing.vic.gov.au/public-housing-renewal-program
PUBLIC TENANT EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM (PTEP)

The Public Tenant Employment Program (PTEP) provides opportunities for public housing tenants to gain sustainable employment and training opportunities, and for suppliers tendering for work with the Authority to demonstrate value-for-money considerations beyond just price. If you are a public housing tenant interested in applying for this program, or you are a industry supplier tendering for a project, find out more via our dedicated Public Tenant Employment Program page.
Suppliers can find more information about working with us via our Practitioners page.