Multi-Unit Development Builders Glenroy: What Landowners Should Know Before Developing

If you own an older home on a decent-sized block in Glenroy, you're aware that the area is attractive for townhouses, dual occupancies, and small-scale unit developments. Merri-bek Council has been actively planning for this kind of infill growth through its Municipal Planning Strategy and the Glenroy Structure Plan, and there is plenty of demand.

Is your site set up to make the most of this? There's the theory of multi-unit development, but the practical, Glenroy-specific points that determine whether your block is a two-townhouse site, a four-unit site, or something bigger are crucial information.

Can I build multiple units on my Glenroy block?

Before you get excited about floor plans, you need to know what zone your property sits in. In Merri-bek, this can double (or halve) your options, and a lot of Glenroy's traditional residential streets fall under the Neighbourhood Residential Zone (NRZ1).

NRZ1 comes with a hard cap of four dwellings per lot, and it doesn't matter if your block is 800sqm or 1,200sqm. Buildings are also capped at two storeys (9 metres). So if you're picturing six or eight townhouses because you've got a big block, NRZ1 zoning will bring that plan back down to earth pretty quickly, unless you're looking at consolidating multiple titles.

Compare that to General Residential Zone (GRZ), where dwelling numbers aren't statutorily capped and are instead assessed on how well your design performs against ResCode. Or Residential Growth Zone (RGZ1) and Mixed Use Zone (MUZ), which apply around the Glenroy Activity Centre and along corridors like Pascoe Vale Road and Wheatsheaf Road. These zones allow buildings up to 13.5 metres (roughly four storeys) and higher site coverage, which is where genuine apartment-style or higher-density townhouse projects start to make financial sense.

Essentially, two properties that look identical from the street can have completely different development ceilings depending on which side of a zoning line they sit on. This is the very first thing worth confirming before you talk to an architect or real estate agent, and definitely before you set a price expectation in your head.

Is block shape or size more important?

A big block doesn't automatically mean a big yield. Frontage width tends to be the real limiting factor. If your frontage is around 15-18 metres, side-by-side townhouses with individual driveways are usually on the table, and buyers love that layout because each dwelling gets its own street presence. Narrower blocks, say 12-14 metres wide, generally need to go tandem, with a shared driveway running down one side.

The driveway isn't free real estate you can plan around loosely either, as council access standards require roughly 3 metres of driveway width plus a 1-metre setback, which is 5 metres gone before you've even started laying out the actual dwellings.

This is the kind of detail that trips up landowners who get a napkin sketch done early and fall in love with a yield number that a proper site assessment later rules out. Better to know upfront.

What are the tree canopy rules?

Merri-bek takes tree canopy seriously, and it directly affects your buildable footprint. Any tree over 5 metres tall, with a trunk over 0.5 metres in circumference, or a canopy spread of 4 metres or more, is protected, and removing or pruning it needs a permit, which council doesn't hand out lightly.

On top of protecting existing trees, newer design standards (under Amendment C190) require each new dwelling to include its own deep-soil, permeable planting zone (generally at least 4.5m x 4.5m) big enough to eventually grow a proper canopy tree. That space has to come from somewhere, and it usually eats into basement plans, driveways, or ground-floor footprints. If your site has a mature tree in the middle of it, that's not necessarily bad news; it might just mean your layout needs to work around it rather than against it.

The numbers around levies and contributions

Under Amendment C235mbek, Merri-bek charges a Public Open Space contribution of 8.68%, calculated on the unimproved value of your land and payable when you subdivide. It's a genuine cost line, and it needs to be built into your feasibility numbers from day one, as this is not something you want to discover halfway through the project. 

Alongside that, Amendment C236mbek brings in a Development Contributions Plan charging a set infrastructure levy per new dwelling created, running through to 2041 and funding local roads, drainage, and open space upgrades.

None of this is a reason to avoid developing; it's just part of doing the maths properly before you commit. A site that looks profitable on paper with a rough four-unit estimate can look quite different once POS contributions, DCP levies, and deep-soil requirements are all accounted for.

How do I develop my block in Glenroy?

If you're seriously weighing up your options, the smartest first step is confirming your zoning and any overlays, as Heritage, Special Building, or Environmental Audit overlays can all add extra requirements, particularly if your property was ever used for anything other than a residential dwelling. A quick VicPlan check or council property report will tell you exactly where you stand.

From there, a pre-application meeting with Merri-bek Council is worth doing. It lets you test a concept layout against what planning officers want to see (streetscape fit, tree retention, driveway placement) before you've spent real money on detailed drawings. This pays off as: properly prepared applications in Merri-bek see roughly a 96% approval rate, with a median processing time around 105 days. Finally, get in touch with our team at Jem Homes, and we'll help you plan and build a property that is worth the effort.