Mt Martha: Family lists vacant block bigger than a small suburb after 55 years of ownership
A Mornington Peninsula bush block big enough to be a small suburb is expected to make way for a major housing development once it is sold.
And locals are hoping it could help address a “tent city” along the municipality’s popular foreshore.
Warlimont & Nutt director Fergus Nutt said 121-131 Hearn Rd, Mt Martha, had been in the same family since 1968, but was likely to be turned into dozens of homes once sold.
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Previously used for cattle grazing, the 26.4ha plot – which is being sold along with a nearby 2.39ha block, spanning four titles all together- is larger than the suburb of Gardenvale, which is just 16ha in size, and comparable to Ripponlea which covers 29ha.
Mr Nutt said the vendors were yet to declare an asking price for the sites with Port Phillip Bay views.
“The vendors’ instructions were to put it to the market and see what the market will pay,” Mr Nutt said.
Records show Mt Martha’s $14m vacant land price record was set by a 1.95ha plot at 180 Bentons Rd in 2018 — a fraction of the size of the soon to be sold larger block.
Mr Nutt said that pending council approval, the Hearn Rd sites’ low density residential zoning offered capacity to develop about 80 “lifestyle blocks” sized between 2500sq m-4000sq m.
He added that it was likely whoever purchased the mega block would lobby Mornington Peninsula Shire to change it to a higher density zone, potentially creating smaller, more affordable blocks.
The imminent listing has raised hopes for more homes to help curb the Mornington Peninsula’s homelessness crisis, with the local Shire indicating about 1000 residents are experiencing homelessness.
About 16 per cent of them sleep rough every night, many in tents near the foreshore.
The council is calling on the state government to make it mandatory for all the municipality’s new housing projects to include a percentage of social and affordable properties.
Southern Peninsula Community Support chief executive Jeremy Maxwell said there was an “enormous” need for more local affordable housing.
“We’ve got over 4000 people on the public housing waiting list on the Peninsula,” Mr Maxwell said.
He said families, single men and women and older people were among those currently staying in the Peninsula’s single, small crisis accommodation site.
Mr Maxwell said if the Hearn Rd land was developed for housing, designating about 20 per cent as affordable homes would be “pretty significant” for the municipality.
Mornington Peninsula Ratepayers’ and Residents’ Association president John Cain said the region’s homelessness issue appeared to be “getting worse”.
He regularly visits the Rosebud foreshore as a conservation group volunteer.
“A few years ago, there were maybe one to two people living on the foreshore,” Mr Cain said.
“About four weeks ago, I did come across six to eight people living in tents down there, it was like a tent city.”
Expressions of interest for the 121-131 Hearn Rd property close at 2pm, September 8.
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Originally published as Mt Martha: Family lists vacant block bigger than a small suburb after 55 years of ownership
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