Council is undertaking a review of the existing local heritage policy and the application of the Heritage Overlay to improve the protection of significant heritage places.
Project Background and Objectives
The Alpine Planning Scheme Review endorsed in 2023 noted the requirement for a review of the existing local heritage policy and the application of the Heritage Overlay in the Alpine Planning Scheme, as well as the need to undertake a heritage gap analysis to identify existing places that do not have a place citation report, and to update and address any gaps found.
The key objectives of the review are to:
- Prepare or review place citation reports and statements of significance for 65 individual places included within the Heritage Overlay, review the curtilage of the application of the Heritage Overlay on each of these properties, and review the additional heritage controls in the Schedule to the Heritage Overlay at Clause 43.01 of the Alpine Planning Scheme.
- Review the place citation report, prepare a statement of significance, and the curtilage of the Wandiligong Heritage Precinct (HO83).
- Prepare place citation reports and identify the appropriate curtilage for 19 places that were removed post-exhibition from Amendment C51, which implemented the Alpine Shire Heritage Study 2008 into the Alpine Planning Scheme.
Current and next steps
Council has appointed a consultant to undertake the Heritage Review. The project will involve fieldwork, historical research, and heritage assessments to prepare draft place citations and statements of significance for places that will need them.
The consultant will prepare a draft report that will provide a summary of any updated place citation reports, statements of significance, and proposed changes to curtilage and other heritage controls.
Council officers will consult with stakeholders to review the draft report's contents, including property owners, custodians, and historical societies, before preparing a final report which is expected to be considered by Council in mid-2024.
It is expected that the findings of the Heritage Review will be incorporated into the Alpine Planning Scheme through a Planning Scheme Amendment.
A place citation report outlines the history and historical context, a physical description, and a comparative analysis of places included within the Heritage Overlay.
A place citation report will also include a statement of significance of the place.
Every heritage place, either a precinct or individual place, should have a statement of significance that clearly establishes the importance of the place and addresses the heritage criteria to assess the value of the heritage place. The statement outlines:
- What is significant about the place?
- How the place is significant?
- Why the place is significant?
Statements of significance for heritage places in Alpine Shire can be found on Council’s website.
Information about the Heritage Criteria can be found on the Victorian Planning website.
The curtilage refers to the extent that the Heritage Overlay applies on the land. The curtilage will aim to capture those elements of the place that are significant, retain the setting or context of the significant place, and regulate development in proximity to the place.
Generally, the curtilage will apply to the entire property, but there will be occasions where the curtilage of the Heritage Overlay will be reduced in size if the surrounding land is of no significance.
The Alpine Planning Scheme Review noted the requirement for a review of the existing local heritage policy and the application of the Heritage Overlay in the Alpine Planning Scheme. The review identified several issues with the existing local heritage policy, including:
- Place citation reports and statements of significance do not exist for 65 places in the Heritage Overlay, resulting in a lack of knowledge about the significance of those places. This can lead to difficulty in assessing planning permits triggered by the Heritage Overlay.
- Owing to this, it is unclear if the curtilage of these places or additional heritage controls that apply are appropriate for these places.
- A statement of significance does not exist for the Wandiligong Precinct (HO83).
- A review of the place citation reports is needed for places removed post-exhibition from Amendment C51.
The only new places being identified for inclusion in the Heritage Overlay are the 19 places removed post-exhibition from Planning Scheme Amendment C51. These places were identified in the Alpine Shire Heritage Study 2008 and were removed from the Amendment to allow time for further investigations on the heritage significance of these places. These investigations will be undertaken as part of this review.
Any additional places for inclusion with the Heritage Overlay will need to be identified and investigated in a future Heritage Study.