Council green-lights major expansion of Chapman Street Reserve

North Melbourne is set for a significant boost in greenery, with the City of Melbourne approving the final concept plan for the expansion of Chapman Street Reserve as part of its new Garden City campaign.

The plan was endorsed at the Future Melbourne Committee meeting on December 2, paving the way for the transformation of the small reserve at the intersection of Errol, Chapman and Murphy streets into a much larger neighbourhood park.

Lord Mayor Nick Reece said the project reflected the city’s commitment to accelerating greening works across local neighbourhoods.

“We’re growing the garden city one project at a time. We’re fast-tracking projects in our neighbourhoods like North Melbourne, where every green space counts,” Cr Reece said.

“This final concept plan reflects what North Melburnians told us they value most – featuring twice as much open space, accessible paths, more trees and lawns.”

The redeveloped reserve will combine the current park with surrounding nature strips and the adjacent median, nearly doubling the amount of green open space from 1960 square metres to 3860 square metres.

The final concept plan includes 28 new trees, larger lawn areas for community use, improved pedestrian access and visibility, and environmentally sustainable design elements such as water-sensitive urban design to improve stormwater quality.

Environment portfolio lead Cr Davydd Griffiths said the expanded reserve would become an important green refuge for residents.

The expanded Chapman Street Reserve will provide residents with a greener landscape and a cooler place to escape the heat – and will be a welcoming space to gather, unwind and connect year-round, Cr Griffiths said.

“It’s wonderful to think that future North Melbourne Primary students will have this space to enjoy before and after school – providing a new opportunity to connect with their local environment.”

With the concept plan now approved, the council will begin a formal road discontinuance process.

Detailed design work will also be fast-tracked to ensure the project is ready for delivery in 2026–27, subject to future budget allocations – bringing the project forward two years from its original 2028–29 timeline.

The Chapman St upgrade forms part of a wider push to “green the municipality”, with several neighbourhood open-space projects to be accelerated under the Garden City campaign. •