Rosanna apartments approved despite police minister’s protest

A Rosanna housing development that sparked a cabinet-level rift has been approved by the Victorian government, overriding a local council rejection and a high-profile petition sponsored by Police Minister Anthony Carbines.

The decision by Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny to use her “call-in” powers ends a 12-month planning saga that has become a lightning rod for friction between the state government’s housing targets and local resistance in Melbourne’s leafy suburbs.

The approved plans for the 17-dwelling development at 125 Mountain View Parade, in Melbourne’s north-east, consist of two buildings arranged around a central courtyard. The dwellings include a single one-bedroom apartment, eight two-bedroom apartments and eight three-bedroom homes with a basement carpark for 22 cars and 20 bikes.

However, the state has now mandated stricter conditions than originally proposed; the developer must now increase the building’s street setback by one metre and add more communal facilities including a pet wash and a bicycle repair station. Double-glazed windows are now mandated, and five of the complex’s mooted visitor parking spaces must be converted to resident parking.

Mountain View Parade resident Brent, who was one of those who signed the petition and did not wish to use his surname, said the tweaks would not dampen local opposition.

“The local amenity is just going to be destroyed,” he said. “On any given day you can’t get two cars down this street [as it is].”

Brent said he was now saving to purchase the property next door to his to avoid another apartment building in the street after the precedent.

Banyule Deputy Mayor Rick Garotti said the council had “serious concerns” about being sidelined in the process.

“The additional setback and other conditions are an improvement and represent a better outcome than the original proposal,” he said.

“However, they don’t fully resolve the issues council raised around character, landscaping and neighbourhood fit.”

Despite the controversy, the developer, Jim Clarke-Sullivan from SCS Property, said he believed the apartments would be popular.

“It’s natural that planning changes can generate strong views in the local community, and everyone is entitled to express them,” he told this masthead. “There’s a clear need for single-level, generously sized apartments in Rosanna – we’ve already received several enquiries from people who want to right-size locally and stay part of the community.”

Banyule council’s rejection of the development last year was highly embarrassing for the Allan government. It was the first attempt at Melbourne’s “off-the-shelf” Future Homes program, which allows developers to purchase state-designed plans cheaply with the promise of a fast-tracked four-month approval process.

Small property developer Jim Clarke-Sullivan on the Rosanna property in 2025.Photograph by Chris Hopkins

However, the process stalled when the project hit the desk of local planners. Despite the proposal already having government approval, Banyule council knocked it back in February 2025 after a backlash from residents in an area dominated by large homes and swimming pools.

Housing advocacy group YIMBY (Yes In My Backyard) Melbourne said at the time Banyule council was “giving a masterclass in how local governments foster the housing crisis”.

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Once Clarke-Sullivan took the matter to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, the political drama deepened. Local MP Carbines further undermined the initiative by sponsoring a petition to parliament from a group of locals who had used bleak AI-generated images of the development on a now-deleted website calling the project a planning emergency.

The 900-signature petition, signed by Carbines and presented to the Legislative Assembly in October, branded his own government’s policy a “failed pilot scheme” and argued the “quiet suburban street” was not designed for such density. Premier Jacinta Allan defended Carbines from claims of hypocrisy at the time, saying it was “not unusual” for MPs to represent the views of their local constituents.

An AI-generated image of the Banyule development depicted as a grim slum, used on the website promoting a petition against the three-storey development.

Kilkenny eventually seized the matter from VCAT and referred it to a standing advisory committee of independent experts for advice. Just before Christmas, the Governor in Council officially greenlit the project after the committee found the proposal “exemplary” in design, liveability and sustainability.

“I was incredibly relieved. It’s been a long and pretty emotional journey,” Clarke-Sullivan said. “I’m very pleased that the project has been independently reviewed at the highest level and recognised as appropriate, well-designed and beneficial for Rosanna.”

Clarke-Sullivan said he spent about $130,000 on the application process and paid for legal representation at VCAT and during the call-in, while carrying rising holding costs for finance, land tax and rates.

Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan with Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny (left) and Police Minister Anthony Carbines.AAP

“That’s all money that ultimately adds risk and cost to building much-needed homes in Melbourne,” he said.

The 1608-square-metre site – which once held a large single home and tennis court – was explicitly earmarked by the state government on a searchable public website of all lots deemed eligible for the program because it is within 800 metres of a train station and an “activity centre”, and has no heritage or neighbourhood character overlays.

A state government spokesperson said: “We’re focused on making it easier to build more homes right across the state to give more Victorians the opportunity to live close to what matters to them.”

Just two other Future Homes designs have reached construction phase – in Shepparton and Braybrook – since the program was launched in 2023.

Carbines did not respond to request for comment.

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