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A contentious two-decade-old street parking rule has been overturned by an inner-north council against its own planning officers’ recommendation amid a wider debate on the future of car use and parking in suburban areas.
Darebin Council, which takes in Northcote, Preston and Reservoir, on Monday night narrowly voted in favour of allowing people in homes built after 2004 to apply for permits to park in on-street bays.
Streets Alive Darebin spokeswoman Ruth Jelley says the rule change will have “unintended consequences”.Credit: Justin McManus
Under the previous rule, only homes built before 2004 could access up to two on-street parking permits, even if their property had off-street parking. The 2004 rule was aimed at incentivising developers to provide ample off-street parking.
According to the officers’ report, community consultation found 49 per cent of residents who completed a survey agreed in some way to extending permits, while 35 per cent disagreed.
Officers recommended the 2004 rule remain in place, but councillors voted for an alternative that would give more homes built after that date access to parking permits.
The move was opposed by residents’ group Streets Alive Darebin, whose spokeswoman Ruth Jelley addressed the meeting and later told this masthead the change would have “unintended consequences” such as creating parking scarcity and incentivising motor vehicle ownership over public transport or cycling.
“Lots of people now not eligible for parking permits will be eligible to apply,” she said. “People will find that permit zones will fill up quickly.”
Jelley said the move went against Darebin’s track record tackling climate change and would make streets more congested and “unlivable”. Council officers in the meeting also warned of a potential increase in congestion and high demand in certain areas.
But Preston resident Tania Mannello, who spoke at the meeting in favour of the rule expansion, said the 2004 cut-off was arbitrary and the change would make access to permits fairer.
Mannello lives in a townhouse on a subdivided block with one off-street parking bay. She lives with her partner and the couple own two cars.
Because her townhouse was built after 2004, Mannello said, she and her partner could not park their second car in the street, or have a tradie park there, without incurring a fine. She said her street was quiet and frequently had ample spaces available.
“I live in a quiet residential street with older homes that have double garages and driveways, and they all have access to two [street parking] permits per home, because they built before 2004 and we didn’t,” she said.
Some councillors, including Greens members, voted against the expansion – with independent councillor Susan Rennie describing it as an appeal to “right-wing populism”.
“This is actually a very right-wing populist kind of thing to do,” she said. “I can’t think of another city in the world which is proposing to encourage more on-street parking at this point in time.
“I’ve been back and forth to Paris many times over the last few years and one of the things that strikes me more than anything else in that city is the amount of car parking they’ve removed and replaced with green streets and green trees.”
A similar rule exists in other municipalities, including City of Melbourne, where in some areas it is possible to obtain an on-street parking permit only if your home was built before either 2018 or 2005.
Darebin Council also introduced a new “carers’ permit” to give people providing care to those living with disability or long-term health conditions the opportunity to park near the person’s home.
The council will review the changed rules in 12 months.
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