Bendigo draft puts Maiden Gully town square under power lines

The City of Greater Bendigo has put a draft plan for the Maiden Gully town centre out for comment that shows a public square sitting beneath high-voltage transmission lines, ringed by buildings of up to three storeys. It is a draft, not an adopted policy, and nothing in it has been approved.

Why it matters

The council’s project page calls the document a draft Urban Design Framework for the Maiden Gully activity centre. Bendigo Advertiser describes it as a draft urban development plan; the council’s own label is the one used here. The page says the framework covers the main commercial core, not the whole suburb, and is meant to guide public space projects, help landowners and developers see what land uses and building forms the council considers appropriate, and give planning staff a benchmark when they assess permit applications.

For anyone holding or buying land in the core, that last point is the one to read closely. A framework that is later written into the planning scheme becomes the yardstick for permits, so the heights, active frontages and public space it sets will shape what can be built.

Bendigo Advertiser reports that the draft would allow three-storey buildings along parts of McNamara Drive, including apartments overlooking the square, and homes above shops on several large blocks along the Calder Highway. The council is reported to describe this as part of “ambitious targets” to double medium-density housing stock over 15 years. The draft itself runs to a 6.25 MB PDF that this report has not reviewed in full, so block-by-block heights are not confirmed here.

The numbers

The timeline on the council’s page sets out the process:

• Feedback opened on Monday 5 October 2026 and closes on Friday 6 November 2026.
• Feedback is then reviewed from November 2026 to March 2027, with the outcome shared in April 2027.
• A final framework goes to Council for adoption in June 2027.
• The framework is incorporated into the planning scheme in February 2028.

The transmission lines are the constraint. A City of Greater Bendigo spokesperson told the Advertiser: “The transmission lines are significant existing infrastructure which cannot be relocated.” According to the same report, artist’s impressions show the lines running through the proposed square between the IGA supermarket and the eastern side of McNamara Drive.

AusNet, which owns the lines, told the outlet it is open to a public space under the cables “in principle”, but that this is not final approval of the square’s design. It said the final design would need detailed review and written approval covering structures, activities, landscaping, access and construction methods. It also said any proposal to remove the line would need a technical assessment, because the corridor connecting Bendigo and Kerang has to stay safe and reliable.

Asked whether the lines might deter medium-density developers, the council spokesperson said developers would need to account for the lines along with other existing and proposed infrastructure and environmental conditions.

The Advertiser also links the plan to the 3000 jobs expected at a future industrial park earmarked for Marong, on the argument that nearby housing would help fill those roles.

What’s next

Council staff are holding an information session at Maiden Gully Community Hall from 6pm to 8pm on Tuesday 20 October, and a pop-up at the Coles supermarket forecourt from 10.30am to noon on Saturday 24 October, per the Advertiser. Written feedback goes through the survey on the council’s project page until 6 November.

For developers, the open questions sit with AusNet and the planning scheme rather than the council alone. Easement conditions can govern what is built near the lines and when, and the framework will not take effect in the scheme until February 2028 on the council’s current timeline. Anyone with a site in the core has until 6 November to put a view on heights, uses and the square before the draft is revised.

This is the kind of regional infill test that is spreading across Victoria’s growth centres; see more in our Melbourne coverage.