A golf course in Melbourne’s south-east has angered residents with a plan to ask the state government to rezone it for residential housing, and sell the lucrative site to developers.
The Rossdale Golf Club in Aspendale has been operating at a loss since 2010 and already sold off parts of its 44-hectare green space to developers in a bid to ensure its survival.
Kingston mayor Hadi Saab.Credit: Paul Jeffers
But the Kingston council has taken issue with the latest plans, which it fears could see the club bypass local planning rules and secure rezoning approval for a housing development from Victorian planning minister Sonya Kilkenny.
Kingston mayor Hadi Saab said it was “premature” for the club to seek to bypass local planning authorities.
“There are other more suitable sites across Kingston that could be rezoned if a housing shortfall emerges in the future,” Saab said.
“With the very significant environmental challenges we face, our golf courses are key to tackling climate change and any changes should be very carefully considered.”
Rossdale Golf Club wants to sell to developers.Credit: Paul Jeffers
Saab said the council was unconvinced of the club’s financial pressures to sell.
“The golf club have had their membership double since 2018 by offering discounts. They haven’t proven in our eyes that there is a credible basis to sell,” Saab said.
Rossdale Golf Club president Geoff Charnley dismissed the council’s concerns, saying the club had been following the government’s guidelines on golf courses “verbatim” and had not done anything wrong.
“The club hasn’t made money for 13 years,” said Charnley who first joined the club in 1992. “It’s a very sad decision that we have to sell a land that we love.”
Rossdale is privately owned and has been struggling to retain members for the past decade, with numbers dropping to as low as 400 – significantly less than the 1000 members needed to keep the club financially viable.
Charnley said the club had managed to increase its membership to highs of 950 in the past few years through reduced promotional fees, but that did not solve the cash flow problem.
“We lost about 200 members in April because people are willing to pay $1000 for a membership, but not the $3500 required to keep the golf club running,” he said.
In 2018, the club sold a 2400 square metre corner of land to property developer Intrapac for an undisclosed amount. At the time, the sale was supported by the Kingston Council as the club was at risk of collapse.
The council also unanimously voted to back a proposal for a section of the course to be subdivided for development.
The developers have yet to commence construction but have first and last rights on sale of the rest of the site, which is estimated to be worth upwards of $180 million, depending on the rezoning.
Kingston council wrote to planning minister Sonya Kilkenny to raise concerns the golf course was not a suitable location for a large-scale housing development, because of its proximity to the Edithvale-Seaford Wetlands.
“Developers won’t be able to use the entirety of the land for development,” he said.
The nearby Edithvale-Seaford Wetlands.Credit: Gary Medlicott
In 2018, fierce public backlash over the development of nearby Kingswood golf club in Dingley by Australian Super prompted the state government to establish a special golf course redevelopment standing advisory committee.
The proposal to build 800 new houses on the site was opposed by 8000 residents – the local federal MP, the local state MP, Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus; and the Kingston council.
A state government spokesperson said the minister for planning had not received any request for a planning scheme amendment to redevelop the Rossdale site.
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