Sprawling multimillion-dollar pockets of prime real estate across Melbourne’s east remain locked in planning limbo, with several prominent sites sitting vacant for years.
Ambitious blueprints for these blocks range from soaring 36-storey residential towers, hotels, and bustling shopping complexes to council-led visions for expansive public parklands.
From historic brickworks to former night-life and automotive hubs, these locations have become targets for graffiti and neglect.
837 Whitehorse Road and 3-5 Poplar Street, Box Hill
A long-vacant block of land with permit approvals for a 36-storey high-rise remains on the market with an asking price of $25m.
The vacant block at 837 Whitehorse Rd and 3-5 Poplar St was listed for sale earlier this year, with the corner block boasting permit approval for 320 dwellings and retail spaces.
Teska & Carson real estate agent Stephen Speck said the opportunity was “incredibly rare” because of the uninterrupted city views afforded by the site, which sits at the “gateway to Box Hill”.
“There has been interest from Chinese and Vietnamese developers,” he said.
“There has still also been some interest from local builders.”
The proposed 36-storey tower — designed by the renowned architectural firm Peddle Thorp — could include a mix of apartments, serviced accommodation, a hotel and office spaces.
There are also “concept plans” for an additional 120 serviced apartments to be added to the site.
Mr Speck said potential buyers could make use of the approved permit for the site or they could explore alternative options including build-to-rent housing, medical or education facilities.
“The owners decided to sell because they do not have the time or the power to develop this space because they have too many projects,” he said.
“So this is a great opportunity.”
The site has sat vacant for more than seven years after a string of residential and commercial buildings were levelled, creating a massive “super lot” that has been waiting nearly a decade for a developer to turn the first sod.
Box Hill Brickworks
The historic Box Hill Brickworks site is the subject of a battle between Whitehorse Council and developers after councillors voted to try and purchase the 7ha former Brickworks.
The Brickworks opened in 1884 and produced machine and hand made bricks, tiles, earthenware and porcelain until 1988.
The Brickworks site has sat fenced off and vacant since.
Councillors voted to authorise council officers to enter into negotiations for the potential purchase of the site at 14 Federation St in October, with a plan to turn the site into open parklands.
The purchase attempt came at a time when site owners, development company Phileo Australia, unveiled plans to build 10-storey towers — with the potential for even larger apartment complexes — during public hearings for the Suburban Rail Loop East Precincts advisory committee.
Planning documents revealed the controversial changes to the plans for the former Box Hill quarry and landfill.
The new plans include towers of up to 10-storeys and potentially even taller — with no specified height limit — in the middle of the site.
The updated plans are yet to be officially approved or publicly advertised.
The site’s owners, Phileo Australia, previously advertised plans for a fixed 21m height limit covering the whole site at 14 Federation St, restricting all residential towers to five or six storeys.
Locals are against any residential development at the site and would rather it be transformed into public open green space.
Old Belgrave Motors Site — 14 Monbulk Rd, Belgrave
Locals and Yarra Ranges council successfully banded together to stop a controversial multistorey development at the vacant Belgrave Motors site — but despite their victory, the property remains a derelict eyesore.
The Monbulk Rd site has sat empty since 2018, when land owners refused to renew the mechanic’s lease in a bid to redevelop the property into a shopping centre development.
The plans, submitted by developers Pulitano Properties, included a supermarket shops, cafe, offices and a childcare centre.
Locals — including the Save Belgrave Township Group — ran a fierce campaign against the proposed development due to fears it would have an impact on the vegetation surrounding the Puffing Billy Railway.
In 2020, the council voted to refuse to grant a planning permit on a number of grounds, including overdevelopment of the site, a lack of detailed traffic analysis, and a failure to provide pedestrian links to the nearby train station.
The refusal decision was upheld by VCAT in 2022.
Four years on from the permit refusal, no new plans have been made for the dilapidated eyesore.
93-97 Maroondah Hwy, Ringwood
The massive former Rivers clearance outlet in Ringwood has been sitting vacant for years, waiting for developers to transform the glaring eyesore.
The site operated as the iconic Jooce nightclub in the 1990s before it was repurposed into a commercial hub including a Genesis gym and the Rivers warehouse.
The gym remains open, but the former Rivers store has sat fenced off and vacant since it closed.
The site boasts approved permits for an 11-storey tower featuring 256 residential apartments, 11 townhouses, and retail spaces on the lower levels.
The property was sold in late 2024 to international developers for $18.88m.
Construction is yet to begin at the site, but a new planning application for construction amendments and the installation of development signage was listed with Maroondah Council in early June.