Injunction bid seeks to halt public housing evictions as legal fight continues

Lawyers for public housing tenants in North Melbourne and Flemington will return to court this week, seeking an urgent injunction to stop Homes Victoria from evicting remaining residents while a further appeal is pursued.

At a hearing scheduled for 9.45am on Thursday, February 5, in the Red Court of the Supreme Court of Victoria, the Victorian Court of Appeal will be asked to restrain Homes Victoria from serving notices to vacate on tenants still living in three inner-city towers until an application for special leave to appeal is determined by the High Court of Australia.

The application follows the Court of Appeal’s December ruling upholding the legality of the state’s plan to retire and redevelop all 44 public housing towers across Victoria by 2051. That decision cleared the way for demolition to proceed at the first estates in Flemington, North Melbourne and Carlton, but legal advocates have argued that the ruling did not settle broader questions about consultation, timing and the treatment of residents who do not wish to leave.

Inner City News understands that around 32 households remain in the three towers subject to the original legal challenge. Those residents have declined relocation offers and are seeking to stay in their homes while legal options are exhausted. Homes Victoria is currently planning to begin evictions towards the end of February.

Lead plaintiff Jason Mallard has instructed his lawyers to seek special leave to appeal the Court of Appeal’s decision, a process that must be initiated by February 11. The injunction application is intended to preserve the status quo until the High Court determines whether it will hear the case.

IMCL managing lawyer Louisa Bassini said the request was about preventing irreversible harm while unresolved legal questions remain.

“Several dozen households are still living in these three towers, and they should not be forced to move until these legal matters are resolved,” Ms Bassini said.

Those households have rejected offers to relocate because they want to stay in their homes and neighbourhoods where they feel connected to their community and to essential services, including health care and public transport.

The latest court action comes amid renewed scrutiny of the government’s broader public housing renewal program. It follows the revelation that a further seven public housing towers have recently been added to Homes Victoria’s redevelopment pipeline, including several older persons’ housing sites in North Melbourne, Flemington and nearby suburbs.

Ms Bassini said the decision to press ahead with additional demolitions while legal challenges were ongoing highlighted the concerns raised by residents and advocates.

“Homes Victoria is continuing to push ahead with this program by announcing the demolition of further buildings, despite widespread opposition and while important legal questions remain unanswered,” she said.

“This approach sidelines the views of those most affected and their right to have the decision properly tested.”

The seven newly listed towers include sites at 29 Crown St in Flemington and 159 Melrose St in North Melbourne, intensifying local concern about the cumulative impact on established communities in the inner north and west.

Critics argue the expansion of the demolition list sits uneasily with a 2025 parliamentary inquiry recommendation that demolitions be paused unless evidence showed demolition was the only viable option.

That inquiry also heard expert evidence suggesting that retaining and retrofitting towers could deliver significant savings, including an estimated $327 million at the Flemington estate alone.

In December, the Victorian Court of Appeal found that Homes Victoria’s decision interfered with tenants’ right to home under the Charter of Human Rights, but ruled the interference was justified at the policy stage and that tenants were not entitled to procedural fairness before redevelopment planning began.

For residents still in place, the injunction bid represents a last attempt to delay evictions while the highest court considers whether the case warrants further examination.

The outcome of Thursday’s hearing will determine whether those households can remain in their homes for now, or whether the redevelopment program moves into its next, more contentious phase.