Paul Whelan Email Address

CitySwitch Program Manager

The City of Melbourne manages more than 500 hectares of open space. This represents almost 15 per cent of the total area of the City of Melbourne. To meet the needs of the growing and changing residential and worker population and to respond to issues such as climate change, we have prepared our first draft Open Space Strategy for the entire municipality. Our first Open Space Strategy provides the overarching framework and strategic direction for open space planning in the City of Melbourne for the next 15 years. A key objective of the strategy is to plan Melbourne’s open space network to be within easy walking distance to the community, particularly in areas of forecasted population growth. What kinds of issues does the strategy address? The strategy provides direction on these key issues: the unprecedented demand for open space as Melbourne’s population continues to grow climate change â€" a decade of drought, water restrictions and extreme weather and the predicted impacts of climate change provide additional challenges in the management of parks and reserves and the role they can play in climate change adaptation ensuring open spaces can provide for and adapt to differing needs and uses. This includes providing people with the opportunity to connect with nature.