This overlay seeks to ensure that the development of land prioritises the protection of human life and strengthens community resilience to bushfire. It also identifies areas where the bushfire hazard warrants protection measures to be implemented and ensures that development is only permitted when the risk to life and property from bushfire can be reduced to an acceptable level. 

Approximately 270 properties in Whitehorse (in Mitcham) are covered by this overlay, which was introduced through Amendment GC13 and came into effect on 3 October 2017. This was a result of the Victorian Government reviewing and updating bushfire hazard mapping across Victoria after the 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission.

The BMO area within Whitehorse ( PDF 1.41MB) map shows the affected area.

For more information refer to Department Environment, Land, Water and Planning Bushfire Management Overlay.

This overlay identifies areas which require the form and conditions of future use and development to be shown on a ‘development plan’ before a planning permit can be obtained to use or develop the land.  There are currently eight schedules to this overlay in the Whitehorse Planning Scheme:

Clause 43.04 - Development Plan Overlay

• Schedule 1: Forest Hill Activity Centre
• Schedule 2: Strathdon Community, Jolimont Road, Forest Hill
• Schedule 3: Kingswood College, 355 Station Street, Box Hill South
• Schedule 4: Crossway Baptist Church – 2-18 and 27-29 Vision Drive and 709 Highbury Road, Burwood East
• Schedule 5: 104-168 Hawthorn Road, Forest Hill (former ATV-0 television studio site)
• Schedule 6: Former Brickworks Site, Burwood East (78 Middleborough Road)
• Schedule 7: 56 and 58-74 Station Street, Nunawading (former Daniel Robertson Brickworks site)
• Schedule 8: 16-18 Spring Street, Box Hill

This overlay identifies areas which are affected by specific requirements relating to the design and built form of new development. There are currently nine schedules to this overlay in the Whitehorse Planning Scheme:

43.02 - Design and Development Overlay

• Schedule 1: Jeffery Street Area
• Schedule 2: Gardiner's Creek Environs
• Schedule 3: Deakin University - 'Northern Oval' Site
• Schedule 4: Neighbourhood Activity Centres
• Schedule 5: Mitcham Neighbourhood Activity Centre
• Schedule 7: 85, 101-109 Burwood Highway and 3 Edward Street, Burwood
• Schedule 8: Blackburn Neighbourhood Activity Centre and Megamile (West) Major Activity Centre)
• Schedule 9: Tally Ho Activity Centre
• Schedule 10: 289-291 Morack Road, Vermont South

This overlay seeks to ensure that potentially contaminated land is suitable for a use which could be significantly adversely affected by any contamination.

Clause 45.03 - Environmental Audit Overlay

This overlay identifies areas where land is affected by environmental constraints and ensures that development is compatible with identified environmental values. There are currently two schedules to this overlay in the Whitehorse Planning Scheme:

Clause 42.01 - Environmental Significance Overlay

• Schedule 1: 131-173 Central Road, Nunawading
• Schedule 2: 15 Virgillia Street, Blackburn North

This overlay seeks to conserve and enhance heritage places of natural and cultural significance and those elements which contribute to the significance of heritage places. It also aims to ensure that development does not adversely affect the significance of heritage places.

The Schedule to the Heritage Overlay in the Whitehorse Planning Scheme identifies the specific controls that apply to land and buildings affected by the overlay. There are 198 individual properties in Whitehorse covered by the Heritage Overlay plus 17 heritage precincts listed below that contain approximately 980 properties: 

Clause 43.01 - Heritage

Schedule to Heritage Overlay

• Churchill Street Precinct, Mont Albert
• Combarton Street Precinct, Box Hill
• Mont Albert Residential Precinct, Mont Albert
• Mont Albert Shopping Centre Precinct, Mont Albert
• Vermont Park Precinct, Vermont South
• Blacks Estate Precinct, Mont Albert
• Thomas Street Precinct, Mitcham
• Mount View Court Precinct, Burwood
• Mates’ Housing Development Precinct, Box Hill
• William Street Precinct, Box Hill
• Tyne and Watts Street Corner Precinct, Box Hill North
• Alexander Street Precinct, Box Hill
• Windsor Park Estate, Surrey Hills
• Box Hill Commercial Precinct
• AV Jennings Estate Precinct, Nunawading
• Burwood Skyline Drive-in Cinema (Group Listing), Burwood
• Concept Construction Display Homes Precinct, Forest Hill

You can download guidelines for the Churchill, Mont Albert, Combarton, Black's Estate and Thomas Street Princincts, as well as development Guidelines for Individually Listed Buildings on the Heritage in Whitehorse page.

This overlay identifies land in flood storage or flood fringe areas affected by the 1 in 100 year flood, or any other area determined by the floodplain management authority (Melbourne Water). The overlay ensures that development maintains the free passage and temporary storage of floodwaters, minimises flood damage, is compatible with the flood hazard and local drainage conditions and will not cause any significant rise in flood level or flow velocity.

The overlay seeks to protect water quality in accordance with the provisions of relevant State Environment Protection Policies, particularly in accordance with Clauses 33 and 35 of the State Environment Protection Policy (Waters of Victoria).

Clause 44.04 - Land subject to inundation overlay

This overlay identifies areas of existing or preferred neighbourhood character and ensures that development respects the neighbourhood character. It also aims to prevent, where necessary, the removal of buildings and vegetation before the neighbourhood character features of the site and the new development have been evaluated. There are currently two schedules to this overlay in the Whitehorse Planning Scheme:

Clause 43.05 - Neighbourhood Character Overlay

• Schedule 1: Blackburn Early Settlement Neighbourhood Character
• Schedule 2: Box Hill Neighbourhood Character

This overlay facilitates an appropriate provision of car parking in an area, and identifies areas and uses where local car parking rates apply. 

This overlay applies to the Box Hill Metropolitan Activity Centre (MAC). It was introduced through Amendment C158, which implemented the Box Hill Central Activities Area Car Parking Strategy 2014. 

The schedule applying to the Box Hill MAC includes parking objectives and sets out particular car parking provision rates for new office and residential uses. It intends to manage car parking demand and supply, reduce vehicle trips and encourage the use of active and sustainable travel modes.

Clause 45.09 - Parking Overlay

This overlay identifies land which is proposed to be acquired by a public authority. The overlay reserves land for a public purpose and to ensures that changes to the use or development of the land do not prejudice the purpose for which the land is to be acquired.

The schedule to this overlay sets out which authority intends to acquire the land and the proposed purpose of land acquisition. 

Clause 45.01 - Public Acquisition Overlay

This overlay aims to identify significant landscapes and to conserve and enhance these special areas in the municipality. There are nine schedules to the overlay in the Whitehorse Planning Scheme:

Clause 42.03 - Significant Landscape Overlay

• Schedule 1: Blackburn Area 1
• Schedule 2: Blackburn Area 2
• Schedule 3: Walker Estate (Mitcham)
• Schedule 4: Blackburn Early Settlement Neighbourhood Character – Vegetation Retention
• Schedule 5: Nominated Large Sites: 1 Lake Road, Blackburn, 57-67 Central Road, Blackburn and 131-173 Central Road, Nunawading
• Schedule 6:  Yarran Dheran, Somers Trail, Collina Dell and Menin Road
• Schedule 7: Vermont (Glenburnie Road and Environs)
• Schedule 8: Vermont (South of Canterbury Road)
• Schedule 9: Neighbourhood Character Areas.  This Schedule was updated on 30 July 2020 and is an interim tree protection control.  The schedule applies to all residential land in the municipality that is not covered by SLO1 to 8. See planning scheme amendment C219 for more details.

This overlay identifies land liable to inundation by overland flows from the urban drainage system as determined by, or in consultation with, the floodplain management authority (Melbourne Water). The overlay ensures that development maintains the free passage and temporary storage of floodwaters, minimises flood damage, is compatible with the flood hazard and local drainage conditions and will not cause any significant rise in flood level or flow velocity.

The overlay seeks to protect water quality in accordance with the provisions of relevant State Environment Protection Policies, particularly in accordance with Clauses 33 and 35 of the State Environment Protection Policy (Waters of Victoria). 

Clause 44.05 - Special Building Overlay

This overlay identifies a site or an area where there are specific controls to achieve particular land use and development outcomes in extraordinary circumstances. Land in this overlay can be used or developed in accordance with a specific control contained in the corresponding incorporated document. The specific control can:

• Allow land to be used or developed in a manner that would otherwise be prohibited or restricted.
• Prohibit or restrict the use or development of the land beyond the controls that may otherwise apply.
• Exclude any other control in this scheme.

Clause 45.12 – Specific Controls Overlay

Schedule to Clause 45.12

The incorporated documents are listed in the schedule to the overlay and are available on the DELWP web page.

This overlay has been applied to the State government’s Suburban Rail Loop and North East Link projects. Read more information about the overlay that applies to the Suburban Rail Loop.

This overlay protects areas of significant vegetation, preserves existing trees and vegetation, and seeks to minimise loss of vegetation.  The overlay recognises vegetation that is of special significance, natural beauty, interest and importance. 

There are currently three schedules to this overlay in the Whitehorse Planning Scheme:

Clause 42.02 - Vegetation Protection Overlay

• Schedule 1, Schedule 3 and Schedule 5: Significant Exotic, Native and Indigenous Trees. To determine which tree is covered by the VPO, refer to the table below.  You may also wish to visit the Tree Assistance Fund page if you have a VPO tree on your property.

• Please note Schedule 2 and Schedule 4 were blanket controls that applied to some land in Mont Albert North and Mitcham have been removed as part of Amendment C219, and replaced by the SLO9 overlay controls.