1400 Homes Set to Transform Fitzroy Gasworks From Industry to Housing
Construction has begun on the first residential phase of Melbourne’s Fitzroy Gasworks precinct, marking a major milestone for the transformation of the former industrial site into a new mixed-tenure neighbourhood of 1400 homes.
GALLERY
The Inner North Collective Joint Venture, comprising Assemble, Milieu and Hickory, alongside capital partners AustralianSuper and HESTA, has broken ground on the first of four development phases following a five-year planning process.
Located on the corner of Alexandra Parade and Smith Street, the first stage will deliver 513 build-to-rent apartments across parcel B, including 121 social homes and 43 affordable homes in partnership with Housing Choices Australia.
The development is intended to create more than a collection of new dwellings, with residents set to have access to open spaces, a rooftop garden, co-working and event spaces, cafes and a gym.
A vertical multi-use sports centre is already operating on the Fitzroy site. Tipped as Australia’s first of its kind, the facility includes four courts for basketball, netball and volleyball, as well as a futsal pitch, gym and lounge.
The broader precinct will also provide 1000 bicycle spaces, 150 public car parking bays and 175 additional resident basement spaces, supporting a more connected and lower-car neighbourhood in Melbourne’s inner north.
Parcels B and C, approved earlier this year, will together deliver 1052 mixed-tenure homes. Parcel C will be delivered by Milieu and is expected to commence in mid-2027, with plans for 539 build-to-sell homes.
The consortium was appointed by Development Victoria following a competitive tender process in 2024. Across the four phases, the Inner North Collective will deliver 70 per cent of the precinct’s homes.
The remaining parcel A will comprise 360 homes and is being delivered by Local: Residential, which was appointed as development partner following an expression of interest process. Around one-third of those homes, or 100 dwellings, will be affordable housing.
The redevelopment represents a significant change for a site that has been part of Melbourne’s industrial history for more than 160 years. The 3.9 hectare site at 433 Smith Street, on Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country and approximately 3.5 kilometres north of the CBD, formed part of Melbourne’s gas infrastructure from the 1860s.
Gas production ceased in 1927, although the site continued to support gas storage and workshops until the 1970s. It was later reconfigured, with most structures demolished during the early 1980s. The heritage-listed Valve House and Porter Prefabricated Iron Store remain as reminders of the site’s industrial past.
Following an EPA Victoria clean-up notice in 2014, Development Victoria launched a new vision for the site in 2021. Remediation works began in 2022, followed by construction of the Wurun Senior Campus and Bundha Sports Centre.
The commencement of residential construction now marks the next chapter in that transformation, bringing new housing, community facilities and public spaces to a former industrial site within an established inner-city neighbourhood.
With more than 1400 homes planned across the full precinct, Fitzroy Gasworks is set to become one of Melbourne’s significant new mixed-tenure communities, combining housing with sport, work, recreation and public space.
Images via The Urban Developer
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