Background

AustralianSuper bought the site in late 2014 from Peninsula Kingswood Country Golf Club.

AustralianSuper developed a masterplan for the site in 2016 and asked Kingston Council to seek an amendment to the Kingston Planning Scheme in order to rezone the site for residential development. In October 2018, Kingston Council voted not to support the proposed planning scheme amendment and AustralianSuper withdrew its planning application for the site.

In the interim, AustralianSuper has reviewed its plans and assessed the feedback received from key stakeholders, including the local Dingley Village community. This process has included consideration of the formal objections received by Council to the earlier application and subsequent conversations held with a wide range of stakeholders.

In November 2019, we held three community consultation sessions in Dingley Village, attended by more than 180 people. These information sessions were a great opportunity for the people who live in and love Dingley Village to help shape the way we think about any future application. Key areas explored with community participants included understanding the sort of open space they valued most (i.e. for active sport, relaxation, passive exercise etc).

The forums enabled us to answer questions as well as understanding the key features the community would like to see in any new proposal.

AustralianSuper has welcomed the release of the state government’s Planning Guidelines for the Conversion of Golf Course Land to Other Purposes in Victoria. These guidelines will help determine the future of the former Kingswood golf course in Centre Dandenong Road, Dingley Village.

The guidelines were developed by the government’s Golf Course Redevelopment Standing Advisory Committee, set up in late August 2019, to inform the redevelopment of surplus golf course land.

The guidelines and full report of the Standing Advisory Committee can be read here.

After considering a range of options, AustralianSuper has decided to develop a new proposal for the site in line with the government’s Planning Guidelines for the Conversion of Golf Course Land to Other Purposes.

The proposal will be informed by the extensive community and stakeholder engagement feedback gained over many years and will aim to balance the needs of the many stakeholders (including the local community, government and statutory authorities).