The Preston Market precinct is proving to be quite the dilemma. On the one hand the developers, Salta Properties, have ‘land banked’ the privately owned property since its purchase in 2004 for $36M. Salta and Medich, the developers, have proposed a renewal project that promotes high density, multi-storey apartment living – up to 19 storeys. It will return them hundreds of millions of dollars on their initial investment.
On the other hand you have the local population calling for the preservation of its unique facility, the undercover, open air Preston Market. Here the heritage factor is not the building or architecture, rather it’s the community connection with the market now ongoing for 53 years.
This is not a new dispute. For your interest here is the link to our article from May 18th 2021.
It’s time to consider what such developments mean in terms of the local established shopping precincts and neighbourhoods. This particular project is a different animal – the market sits upon private land as opposed to the Queen Victoria Market, the South Melbourne Market and the Prahran Market, all of which occupy and exist on council owned land.


The project has seen the intervention of the Victorian Planning Authority and more recently the Victorian Planning Minister, Ms Sonya Kilkenny. The position she has espoused is to provide a Heritage Overlay that will protect the integrity and location of the existing market and its importance to the community.
Here is the summary of the situation by the Victorian Planning Authority.
Preston Market Precinct
The Preston Market Precinct takes in 5.1 hectares of privately-owned land generally bound by Murray Road in the north, Cramer Street to the south, the rear of the High Street shops to the east and St Georges Road to the west. The precinct includes the Preston Market and is next to Preston train station.
Next steps
On 3 April 2023, Minister for Planning Sonya Kilkenny announced that she will introduce new planning controls for the Preston Market Precinct.
The Minister has instructed the Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) to prepare a planning scheme amendment to respond to the recommendations of the Standing Advisory Committee (SAC) and the VPA has made available the material associated with preparing this amendment to the Department.
The new controls are proposed to include a Heritage Overlay to provide clarity on which market features must be preserved in any development and ensure that a significant proportion of the existing market is retained.
A Development Plan Overlay will also be introduced, setting out the requirements that need to be met for development proposals.
This decision was informed by feedback from the local community, as well as advice from the independent standing advisory committee which found that the proposed removal of a substantial portion of the market’s fabric had not struck the right balance in the context of its historical, aesthetic, technical and social significance.
For more information, see:
- Victorian Planning Authority Projects Standing Advisory Committee Report (PDF)
- Preston Market Precinct Q&A – April 2023 (PDF)
The committee‘s recommendations included retention of a fresh food market, greater heritage protection, retention of open space and for surrounding streets to connect the precinct to the new station and High Street.
A planning scheme amendment will be introduced this year to respond to the issues raised in the committee’s recommendations. This includes height controls which will be prepared carefully to maintain community amenity and achieve best practice urban design outcomes.
The VPA’s work on this project is now complete and all the evidence and work prepared by the VPA has been provided to the DTP to use in its preparation of the amendment.
Looking from the outside, there would appear to be not dissimilar forces at work to those experienced under former Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Robert Doyle, when he sought to gentrify the Queen Victoria Market in recent years.
The present Preston Market stall holders probably haven’t realised they are considered expendable by developers Salta Properties, no matter what may be said publicly. It is not surprising to see that the stall holders have been informed their leases will not be renewed, siting a January 2024 closure as a result of the development rules recently released by Minister Sonya Kilkenny and the Department of Planning for the site last month.
One would hope the Heritage Overlay is indeed fast tracked to ensure the overall protection of the market and its facilities to the public. The developers have had over 19 years in which upgrade or even simply maintain the market precinct itself. It does appear sorely neglected.
Perhaps the best outcome would be a purchase of the actual market site by either the Darebin Council or the State Government. The Victorian Planning and Transport Department report of March 3, 2023 can be read here.
Preston is a unique part of Melbourne. Its post war housing consists mainly of California Bungalows with earlier remnant Victorian Terraces on High Street and other locations scattered through the suburb. Its residents’ ethnicity has been varied – Europeans (Greeks, Italians, Macedonians), then Vietnamese and now African. Prior to the waves of immigration it was always a solid working class heartland. The Preston Market provides a strong link to the past and a place for newcomers to adjust to their new country. It is well worth saving in its present form, with moderate improvement.