News / Housing
Minister urged to reject Brunswick Market project
Development would not create enough new homes, says council
Mark Phillips
Wednesday, April 29, 2026
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The state government should reject an application to build new townhouses on part of the former Brunswick Market because it is an underdevelopment of the site, says Merri-bek Council.
The developers have bypassed the council by applying directly to Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny for a permit to build 43 townhouses on the car park land at the back of the shuttered market.
But the council will urge the Minister to refuse the permit because it is not making the best use of a prime parcel of land in the Breese Street precinct between Sydney Road and the Upfield railway line.
While it has no power over the decision, the council says the site should be used to develop a higher density project than what is proposed.
Voting unanimously against the project, councillors also criticised the small proportion of affordable housing proposed as part of the development.
Brunswick Market Developments Pty Ltd – an offshoot of Canberra-based builders Molonglo – is seeking a permit for 38 two and three storey three and four bedroom townhouses and five single bedroom townhouses on the 2300 square metre site at the corner of William and Breese streets.
The single room dwellings would be designated as affordable housing sold at an 18% discount to market value.
The site would be fully occupied by housing with no commercial or retail offering, and the developer has also sought an exemption from all car parking requirements.
The project is valued at $19.3 million.
The site is within the Brunswick activity centre where preferred building height limits were recently increased to a minimum of 12 storeys following the state government’s planning changes.
As a key stakeholder, the council will make a submission to the Planning Minister not to grant a permit on the grounds that the project is an underdevelopment of a key site, the homes are poorly designed, and the affordable housing offer is “inadequate in design, integration, certainty and discount”.
A report to the council’s Planning and Related Matters committee meeting last Wednesday said the development would not only fail to provide enough new housing close to shops, services and public transport, but would also fail to deliver any new jobs after construction was finished because it had no commercial component.
Other recently completed projects in the Breese Street precinct, such as the Nightingale Village, are mid-rise apartment buildings rather than town houses.
Council staff said there would be no improvement to pedestrian amenity as a result of the development and the affordable housing offer, which makes up less than 5% of the total project, was inappropriate.
Five objections had been received against the proposal.
Councillor Adam Pulford said the project should be rejected on several counts.
“This permit would be an underdevelopment of the area,” he said.
“It seems to not make great use of that site right in the heart of central Brunswick so close to public transport … So I’d be surprised if the Minister approves this with her government’s general move to be encouraging more homes in activity centres particularly near public transport.”
Pulford added that he could not see the affordable housing component at an 18% discount to market value being attractive to any community housing provider.
Councillor Jay Iwasaki, within whose Bulleke-bek ward the development sits, said it was also disappointing that there would be no street level commercial premises.
“That ground level activation is so important to a higher density neighbourhood and this doesn’t achieve that, it actually takes us backwards,” he said.
The Brunswick Market site has a chequered history and was once owned by drug kingpin Tony Mokbel.
Molonglo bought the site in 2020 in partnership with the founder of the Aesop skin business, Dennis Paphitas, for a reported $17 million.
They have subsequently put it on the market twice but have now decided to develop the back section themselves.
While the council is hoping Kilkenny will refuse a permit, if one is granted they have suggested extra conditions to increase bike parking and affordable housing.
The council would seek at least 10% of the project to be affordable housing at a 30% market value discount. It would also seek to increase the size of the affordable dwellings to two bedrooms.
A spokesperson for Molonglo said the company remained committed to delivering new housing on the site.
“We’re disappointed with Council’s position, particularly given the need for more well-designed, medium-density housing in Brunswick,” they said.
“The project delivers 43 new homes on a site that currently has none, meaningfully increasing density while retaining an intimate scale.”
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Breese Street is a hellscape, the last thing it needs is more apartments. Townhouses will provide a pleasant break from oppressive density and contribute to the supply of a much-needed housing typology that is becoming increasingly uncommon in the area.
Citing a need for ground level activation is farcical at best – so much of the commercial real estate provided in new apartment buildings languishes. Take a look at 288 Albert… not to mention the sheer oversupply of commercial space on Sydney Road itself. It’s not a matter of ‘if you build it, they will come’.
Some nuance and careful thinking is required, and density is not the answer alone. All things are cumulative in impact – don’t kill the goose that lays the golden egg.
This is exactly what the area needs. We need a diversity of housing options. This is a fantastic alternative for families. They are offering car share options on site and we don’t need any more commercial options in the area, there’s already plenty of that. What we need is well built housing. I hope this project gets the green light.
You’re joking, right? There is no need for any further high rise or commercial shopfronts in Breese St. The last thing we need is any further overdevelopment. Look what’s happened on Victoria St with the Assemble development. Otherwise Breese St risks becoming a concrete canyon with no sunlight.
As a Breese St resident I’m in favour of a low-rise development on this site. There are enough hi-rise blocks in the area and adding more will make Breese St traffic problems even worse. The council did a lousy job of traffic coordination during the last period of building development in the area and I’ve got no confidence that things will be any better next time.
It’s also good that no new commercial opportunities are included. This will mean that existing businesses will not face competition from new outlets. Life is tough enough for them as it is.
If Councillor Jay wants hi rise on this site, then we need a new councillor