Lysterfield locals push to block school from being built in Green Wedge zone

A local environmental group is at loggerheads with a Catholic education not-for-profit over their plans to build a new school site adjacent to Lysterfield Lake Park, citing fears over accessibility during bushfire periods and concerns it will not be in line with the current Green Wedge planning restrictions.

PARED Victoria, a not-for-profit that manages several independent schools across the country, lodged a ministerial planning permit application on 15 December 2023. This application came after two previous proposals for a new building for private boys’ school, Lysterfield Lake College, were knocked back by both Casey Council and the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT).

The site is located within the western end of the Southern Ranges Green Wedge, meaning it requires special consideration to minimise innappropriate development within agricultural land.

Proposed to be developed at 19-23 Horswood Road in Narre Warren North, VCAT rejected the application due to the site’s unsuitability, and incongruence with state and local planning policies intended to protect the Casey Foothills.

PARED Victoria, which has a Catholic ethos and describes itself as a parent-focused education organisation, has already built Harkaway Hills College, an independent girls' school, nearby.

Once a dedicated campus is established, the school is expected to reach its capacity of 239 students by around 2029, from Grade 3 to Year 12.

Local resident and Green Wedges Coalition member Karen Cavanagh launched a petition opposing the development in January, since attracting 4730 signatures.

“It’s an unsuitable site and it really should be closer to the township (Narre Warren North),” she told the Eastern Melburnian.

“It’s a site for agriculture.”

Cavanagh said she and other locals also have concerns whether the school will be able to safely evacuate in the case of a large-scale bushfire.

“You’ve only got the one road going in and out trying to evacuate the kids,” she said.

When asked for comment, a media spokesperson for PARED Victoria said the organisation would not be commenting further, pointing towards a March 2024 statement that said the school community expects to receive notice of the decision of Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny in the second half of this year, with plans to extend the school’s offerings next year.

The proposed plans include administrative buildings, primary and secondary classrooms, a chapel, a hall, two sports grounds and basketball courts, orchards, effluent fields, vineyards, wetlands, landscaping areas, and a total of 121 car spaces, three bus parking bays and 60 bicycle parking spaces.