The Royal Park Protection Group got it right. We always said that construction of the Games Village on the Royal Park Hospital site in Parkville is just an excuse to build a huge private real estate development. Now we know for sure this is happening.

In an article in the Weekend Australian 3 – 4 May 2003 Property Section the developers, "The Village Park Consortium" (Australand and Citta Property Group), state they are advertising the first housing "pre-sales" of the Royal Park "Games Village" with houses priced at $750,000. (Only 190 homes of the total 1,000 dwellings planned are to be built before the Games and will be used to accommodate athletes for two weeks or so.) It is anticipated that "although the Games are three years away …houses should be on sale as early as the second half of next year". It seems that the developers could not even wait before advertising for the legislation sealing the deal to be passed in the Upper House of Parliament this coming week. See attached article.

Julianne Bell Convenor Royal Park Protection Group comments: Being able to now say ‘we told you so’ is no consolation given we stand to lose the former Royal Park Hospital precinct with some of our finest Australian Federation heritage buildings set in 20 hectares of open parkland – established bird and animal habitat with over 1, 000 mature trees. In public hands for 150 years, the land and buildings are now being handed over for private profit. Compare the enlightened view of the NSW Government, which - last year - saved historic inner city Callan Park – similarly with heritage Hospital buildings set in 60 hectares of parkland - from a residential development of 1,000 dwellings.

Writing in the Age on 14 April 2003 in an article "The best real estate deal in the state’s history?" Kenneth Davidson commented: "The Bracks Government is handing over, gratis, 20 hectares of inner-city parkland to a developer for a housing development, plus $85 million in cash. Why? The land alone, as a development site, is worth $250 million at least, based on a recent sale of a vacant lot in the immediate vicinity. And it gets better. Last week the Government rushed legislation through the Legislative Assembly that effectively makes the development immune until 2011 from heritage, environmental and planning legislation that would govern any similar real estate development. The shadow planning minister, Ted Baillieu, …points out "it may well be the ultimate real estate deal…20 hectares of prime public land gifted to a private developer…We do not know the fundamental details; we do not know the financial input; we do not know the valuation of the land; we do not know the conditions of the deal."

What we do know now is that the developers expect to get $750,000 each for 190 houses and $450,000 each for the remaining 700 apartments to be built anytime between 2006 and 2011, staggered of course to "maximise profits".

Patrick White addressing the Save Centennial Park rally in Sydney in 1972 said "Parkland is valuable, and greedy eyes see the money in it. So you must always be on the alert. Hang onto your breathing spaces in this developing and already over congested city" It seems that we have failed to hang onto our Royal Park breathing space in over congested Melbourne and so have failed this and future generations.