North Melbourne residents urge planning minister to rethink a controversial amendment

North Melbourne residents have ramped up their campaign against the Miami Hotel Group, arguing that its proposed 21-metre-high hotel will have a profound impact on the neighbourhood’s character and amenity.

The proposed development, located at 599, 601, 605–609 King St and 13–25 and 27 Hawke St, includes a mixed-use building comprising a residential hotel, food and drink shops, dwellings, and underground car parking.

For the construction of the hotel to proceed, the developer is awaiting a decision from the Minister for Planning Sonya Kilkenny on whether an amendment to the West Melbourne Structure Plan (WMSP) will be granted.

The amendment would allow the land to be rezoned from “General Residential” to “Mixed Use”, thereby exempting it from the three-storey height limit.

The structure plan was adopted by the state government in 2022 and sets out guidelines for West Melbourne’s urban development, including strict height controls to preserve the neighbourhood’s character and ensure appropriate building proportions.

In addition, partial demolition and retention of heritage buildings will be required for the new structure to be built.

This has angered many local residents, with Jennifer Cook leading the campaign against the development and putting pressure on the planning minister to consider the impact the amendment would have on the community.

The existing three-storey Miami Hotel at 13–25 Hawke St has remained largely unchanged since it began operations in 1970, under the same ownership and management by a single family.

Ms Cook acknowledged that while there was a need to update and refurbish the ageing Miami building, many aspects of the current proposal required revisiting.

She would like to see the design align more closely with the heritage and neighbourhood character of this historic area and for the minister to seriously consider the concerns of residents.

Ms Cook argued that the proposal made “a mockery of current planning laws”, which she says can be altered on a whim.

“What price democracy, with this top-down model of government becoming the norm?” she asked the planning minister in a recent letter.

The land at 599–601 King St is currently occupied by two double-storey brick terraces built in 1875. Both dwellings are categorised as “significant” under a City of Melbourne Heritage Study conducted in 2022.

Meanwhile, the land at 605–609 King St is currently vacant but is still classified as a “contributory” heritage place.

“They will be historic, heritage Victorian houses no longer revealed in all their glory,” Ms Cook said. “The aesthetic beauty and uniqueness of these terraces will be diminished, and their historic character compromised by the mass and inappropriate height of the proposed Miami development.”

Ms Cook is not alone in her opposition. Bernie Landy, along with a number of neighbouring residents, has also expressed concern about the impact of the development.

One of Mr Landy’s key concerns is the impact that will have on pedestrian safety, particularly for residents who live on Jones Place, which is where the developer has proposed the rear access to the hotel will be.

According to Mr Landy, the scale of the proposed development is substantially larger than the existing Miami Hotel, and it is likely to result in increased vehicle movements not only on Jones Place.

“Many homes rely on [Jones Place] laneway for garage access, and there are no footpaths, posing significant safety risks if hotel-related traffic, including delivery trucks and service vehicles, begins using this route,” he said. •