Challenge to proposed rooming houses in Monash

We need your support to challenge a decision made by the Monash City Council to grant a permit for the development of two rooming houses in Mount Waverley on a 742m² lot of residential land across from Jordanville Station which will house up to 24 people.

Rooming houses in Melbourne have been known to cause significant anti-social behaviour and criminal activity in otherwise peaceful and quiet neighbourhoods.

The Council’s decision not only potentially places our much beloved neighbourhood at risk, it also risks creating a potential dangerous precedent for the Council to approve other rooming houses right across the City of Monash in the future. This decision, and potential future decisions like it, may have a significant impact on:

• the safety of residents of Monash, particularly children, women and elderly people;

• the peaceful, family-orientated nature and appeal of living Monash;

• property values;

• nearby schools and childcare centres;

• aged care residential care facilities;

• commuters who catch the train from Jordanville and Mount Waverley Stations, and on the Glen Waverley train line more generally;

• noise pollution;

• local traffic on otherwise quiet roads and streets; and

• waste management and cleanliness.

The Council didn’t tell that many people in Mount Waverley about the proposal in 2024 to build the two rooming houses for up to 24 people (which doesn’t include their potential visitors). Despite some people objecting to the development, the Council went ahead anyway and made its decision, with little publicity.

The fight

In March 2025, a small group of neighbours (applicants) launched an application with the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) to review the decision of the Council (VCAT case) to hopefully have the decision set aside, or at least force the Council to make the decision again and require it to advertise the proposal far more widely so the voices of Monash’s residents can be properly heard before such a significant decision is made.

How you can help

The VCAT applicants need donations to help fund the legal challenge to the Council’s decision. As things stand, the VCAT case is the best way the residents of Monash have to fight back against the Council’s decision.

Donations will only be used for the applicants to engage a legal representative and experts, such as town planners, for the VCAT case and any potential subsequent appeals by the applicants or the Council relating to the Council’s decision, including court proceedings, or other directly related proceedings.

Any surplus funds after final determination of the VCAT case (and any subsequent appeals or directly related proceedings) will be given to local charities.

The applicants have already incurred costs for preparing and lodging their application for the VCAT case. Further costs will be incurred as the VCAT case progresses up until VCAT makes a decision. A hearing date is yet to be determined.

The applicants would be very grateful for any donation, big or small, to help in this critical fight against the Council which may have significant consequences for residents right across Monash.

Note: the real names of the organiser and team member have not been used for privacy and safety reasons. All uses and transfers of donated funds are however done so using the full legal name of at least one of the applicants. Donations to the fund can also be made anonymously.