Hawke St residents petition council over preferred greening plan

West Melbourne residents have formally presented a petition to the City of Melbourne calling for changes to the council’s preferred concept for greening Hawke St, arguing the current proposal would worsen living conditions for those along the south side of the road.

The petition, signed by 269 people, was presented to councillors at the March 17 Future Melbourne Committee meeting and calls for the council to reconsider how the long-awaited Hawke St greening project is designed.

Residents are urging the council to retain the existing centre median and mature shade trees while relocating traffic lanes further away from the terrace houses along the south side of Hawke St between Spencer and King streets.

Their proposal, which they say would deliver more greenery and improved amenity, has emerged after months of frustration over the redesign of the Hawke Street Linear Park project.

According to the petition summary, residents support greening the street but oppose a configuration that would move traffic closer to their homes while pushing new landscaping further away.

“With the recent opening of the West Gate Tunnel, the council is planning street greening, but their plan is to put the traffic closer to our homes and remove the mature shade trees in the centre of the road,” the petition states.

Residents say the change would expose homes to increased noise, fumes, heat, vibration and light pollution, particularly as vehicles travel through the curved section of Hawke St.

“The new traffic plan means as cars travel the curve in the road, we will have headlights shining into our front rooms – where we live and sleep,” the petition says.

Instead, residents have proposed retaining the central median and mature shade trees, relocating traffic lanes further north, and expanding greening between the median and the southern footpath.

They argue this layout would create a more effective buffer between traffic and homes while increasing the amount of landscaping.

According to residents, their concept would deliver around 600 square metres more greenery than the council’s proposal while maintaining the existing street infrastructure.

Residents also point to nearby Roden St as an example of how greening could be achieved between homes and the roadway.

“The greening in Roden St last year proves that landscaping can be done between our homes and the median – we have the exact same infrastructure as exists in Roden St,” the petition states.

“We just want the same consideration.”

The petition also highlights the broader benefits of urban greening, including improved air quality, reduced traffic noise and mitigation of the urban heat island effect.

Residents argue that trees and landscaping could filter pollutants, reduce nitrogen dioxide from vehicle emissions and provide shade that lowers temperatures along the street.

“These conditions deteriorate our quality of life,” the petition says, describing the increasing traffic volumes along Hawke St.

“This is a call to action for the Melbourne City Council to listen to its citizens and take prompt and strategic actions to green Hawke St’s south side.”

The Hawke St greening project has been under discussion for more than a decade as part of the West Melbourne Structure Plan and the city’s broader Transport Amenity Program linked to the West Gate Tunnel.

However, plans for the linear park were thrown into doubt late last year when council officers revealed the 2023 endorsed concept design was no longer viable due to a high-pressure gas main running beneath the street.

The discovery meant strict exclusion zones would prevent tree planting above the gas infrastructure, forcing the council to redesign the project and shifting much of the new greening into the central median.

Under the revised concept, Hawke St would be reduced to one traffic lane in each direction while retaining on-road bike lanes and delivering new trees and landscaping along the corridor.

Council officers have previously said the updated design could still deliver more than 2000 square metres of new greening and expand the Hawke and Curzon Street Reserve.

But residents say the redesign would remove large existing shade trees along the southern side of the street and bring traffic closer to homes.

The petition now asks the council to reconsider the configuration before finalising the concept design.

Councillors formally received and noted the petition at its Future Melbourne Committee meeting on March 17, referring it to the council’s general manager of infrastructure and amenity for consideration.

A written response to the first signatory is expected in due course outlining the council’s position.

Consultation on the revised Hawke St greening plans concluded earlier this year, with a final concept expected to return to councillors in the coming months as the city continues planning for the long-delayed transformation of the corridor. •