Buying back properties flooded along the Maribyrnong River in 2022 would cost too much and cause divisions amongst communities, a government report says.
Multiple experts appearing before parliament’s Environment and Planning Committee’s report into flooding events across Victoria two years ago recommended the government adopt a land buyback scheme to acquire properties now at higher risk of flooding.
But the final report stops short of buybacks, warning they would be “likely to cost the Victorian Government a considerable amount of money and be contentious within communities.”
The alternative recommendation is for a resilient houses scheme that would raise or retrofit affected properties from future floods.
Hundreds of properties along the Maribyrnong were inundated when it burst its banks on October 14, 2022, in Aberfeldie, Ascot Vale, Avondale Heights, Kensington Banks and Maribyrnong township.
Some properties in the Rivervue Retirement Village and the Kensington Banks developments had previously not been considered at risk from a one in 100-year flood.
Those planning decisions are now under investigation by the Victorian Ombudsman.
State MP for Melbourne Ellen Sandell said “It’s incredibly unfair that the residents of Kensington Banks are bearing the consequences of the State Government’s bad planning decisions and mistakes.”
Ms Sandell called for compensation for property owners in the suburb saying “Residents bought their homes based on advice from the State Government that they were above the flood risk zone”.
Federal MP for Maribyrnong Bill Shorten and state MP for Footscray Katie Hall were contacted for comment.
Residents at the Rivervue Retirement Village recently told The Age they would not consider retrofitting or raising and may instead consider legal action against the village’s owner Tigcorp.
The New South Wales government announced a buy back scheme for property owners hit by the 2022 floods around Lismore and the Northern Rivers region, but it has since proven contentious.
The program has been beset by allegations of delays and under-delivering.
The Maribyrnong River floods raised a unique issue as they impacted some of the most attractive real estate in suburban Melbourne.
Data Victoria’s December 2023 report projected median house prices of $1.3 million for Maribyrnong across 2024.
Raising or retrofitting some of these properties may also be unfeasible due to the environmental and heritage impacts of the work.
The Maribyrnong valley has been home to First Nations people for 40,000 years.
The river is also considered a hive of biodiversity, with platypus, koalas, sugar gliders, and short-beaked echidnas amongst its more famous native fauna.
The EPC report called on the state government to consider the impact of existing flood mitigation infrastructure like dams, flood walls, drains and levees.
It also recommended stronger future investment in infrastructure, but stopped short of making specific suggestions for the Maribyrnong.
A review by Melbourne Water published in April ruled out damming the river at Keilor due to the environmental and heritage impact.
The state government has until January 31 to respond to the report.
