FAQs

The City of Vincent Heritage List (which also serves as its Municipal Heritage Inventory) exists pursuant to the Planning and Development (Local Planning Schemes) Regulations 2015 and provides statutory protection for heritage places. 

Under State law every local government authority is required to complete and keep under review a Municipal Heritage Inventory (MHI). The MHI is a document that records places in our City that have cultural heritage value and explains why these places are special.

Listing is the way our heritage places are identified and managed through the planning process. This helps look after the environmental, economic and social benefits of our heritage buildings for current and future generations. 

Listing assists with conservation of a place. It’s not intended to stop all change.

There is research demonstrating that caring for places of cultural heritage significance can generate environmental, economic and social benefits. This means that heritage can contribute to wider agendas such as health outcomes, education, the environment and urban planning. Some benefits include:

• Heritage forms part of community identity and culture and creates a sense of place.
• Heritage educates people about the history and importance of places.
• Heritage may contribute towards social stability and cohesion in the community.
• Economic benefits of heritage relate to the individual place and tourism of the area.
• Retention of heritage buildings reduces energy usage associated with demolition, waste disposal and new construction.
• Retention of heritage buildings also promotes sustainable development by conserving existing embodied energy.

Inclusion of a place on the City's heritage list does not prohibit it from further development. 

Managing and conserving places is about ensuring they retain their cultural heritage significance and development, and work is compatible with the heritage values of the place. 

Development and works on places listed on the City’s Heritage List (including demolition, and some renovations, additions and certain forms of repair) require planning approval.   

When assessing development on heritage properties the City uses the standard planning requirements and assesses the development’s impact on the heritage significance of the place, through LPP 7.6.1 Heritage Management - Development Guidelines for Heritage and Adjacent Properties (draft LPP: Development Guidelines for Heritage Places). 

Ultimately, we want to ensure that development retains a building’s heritage significance and is compatible with the heritage values of the place.

Development to heritage listed properties and those adjacent will be assessed via the following policies:

• Development Guidelines for Heritage Places.
• Any applicable Heritage Area policy, being Janet Street, Harley Street and Brookman and Moir Streets.
• The City’s Built Form Policy; and
• The Residential Design Codes