Urban Land Council

Full description

Establishment

The Urban Land Council was formed in May 1975 as the result of an agreement between the Commonwealth and Victorian Governments. The agreement was made pursuant to the provision of financial assistance under the Urban & Regional Development (Financial Assistance) Act 1974 (Commonwealth).

Projects

Under the Act, programs approved for funding included:

• Urban expansion and re-development (which may include sewerage and water supply)
• Area improvement, being urban and regional improvement and rehabilitation
• Sewerage
• Water supply
• Flood mitigation

The Council managed the funding of several major housing projects in the outer metropolitan regions, including new estates in Thomastown, Keilor, Westerngate, Westdale Park, Altona, and Deer Park, as well as the Monmia and Thornhill estates in Keilor Downs.

Functions

The primary objectives of the Council (and successor agencies) were to stabilise land prices and encourage home ownership, particularly First Home ownership.

As the Council was an unincorporated body having no legal entity it could not own land, let contracts, enter into formal agreements, nor own funds. Day-to-day operations of the Council were serviced by the Victorian Ministry of Planning (VA 600), and the Housing Commission of Victoria (HCV) (VA 508).
The HCV purchased designated lands, arranged for planning, servicing, development design, and entered into agreements with municipalities and service authorities regarding development projects. The HCV entered into and administered contracts for construction of works, supervised and administered those contracts, kept account of expenditure, and obtained individual titles to lots so that they might be offered for sale. The HCV administered the sale of lots including receipting of and accounting for monies related to those lots. 

The HCV transferred these responsibilities to the Urban Land Authority (ULA) (VA 5294) once established in 1980.

Replacement

In 1980 the Urban Land Council was replaced by the ULA, set up in accordance with the Urban Land Authority Act 1979 (Victoria), which came into operation on 12 March 1980. At this time, the land purchased for projects funded by the Council was vested in the ULA as well as the Council’s remaining cash reserves.