Your Greens candidate for Northcote
The Greens will fight for a better future for our community, our state and our planet.
With more Greens in parliament, we can tackle the climate crisis, make housing affordable and hold the major parties to account.
Your vote is powerful.
Here’s our plan for a better future for the seat of Northcote, which includes the suburbs of Alphington, Fairfield, Northcote, Preston South and Thornbury.
Have your say!
Fill out the Better Future for Northcote survey
Protect Preston Market
The Greens will continue to fight to protect the existing Preston Market so our community can enjoy this cherished community fresh food hub into the future.
100% renewable energy by 2030
The Greens will stop all new coal and gas projects, including gas drilling next to the 12 Apostles. We will fast-track the transition to 100% renewable energy and end native forest logging in 2023. We will support one million homes to get off gas, including in Northcote.
More affordable housing
The Greens will build 200,000 new affordable homes, including homes for first home buyers and public housing, stop out of control rent rises, give renters more rights, end homelessness by 2030 and make property developers pay their fair share.
Invest in the arts, festivals and live music
The Greens will provide artists a living wage over three years, establish a $1 billion dollar Secure Art Fund for small and medium arts organisations, and provide $100 million per year for new festivals. Locally we will invest $7 million in Gertrude Contemporary Art Gallery to buy a building in the electorate and continue to support local artists.
Genuinely free, high quality public schools
The Greens have a plan for high quality, genuinely free, local public schools. We’ll invest $1.46 billion dollars into Victoria’s public schools and make public education genuinely free by removing out-of-pocket school expenses and ‘voluntary’ contributions for families. We will establish an independent school building authority, to ensure funding for upgrades are delivered transparently and based on need. In the meantime, we will also ensure that a re-elected Andrews government honours the commitments it has made to schools in Northcote, including Thornbury Primary. We’ll also provide $15 million in funding for Wales St Primary’s Stage 2 redevelopment, which includes an Arts and Wellbeing Hub for sport, recreation, art and culture.
Fully funded public healthcare
The Greens will increase health funding by an extra $5 billion. We’ll free up hospital beds by investing in more aged care, disability and rehab beds outside hospitals. We’ll make it easier for people to see a free GP or community nurse, invest in preventative care, dental and mental health care, and give our hard-working public health workers better pay. So everyone can get the care they need.
Safe bike lanes
The Greens will invest $2.5 billion dollars to implement a ‘Big Bike Build’ with hundreds of kilometres of safe and separated bike superhighways across Melbourne. In Northcote, we will invest in more separated bike lanes on key north-south bike routes such as High St and Station St, create more east-west bike lanes such as Darebin Rd and extending and making permanent the bike lane on Heidelberg Rd. We will install bike cages at every station.
More frequent, accessible trams, trains and buses
The Greens will invest $821.5 million in a massive increase in services, so trains and trams run every 5-10 minutes from 7am-7pm, seven days a week, and every 10 minutes in evenings and early mornings. We will create a solar-powered, high-frequency bus network so that Fairfield, Alphington and East Thornbury residents also have fast, reliable public transport
Build Metro 2 train connection
The Greens will invest $100 million to fast-track planning and early works of the Metro 2 train tunnel, which would run from Clifton Hill to Newport via Parkville. This new tunnel will allow higher frequency train services along the Hurstbridge and Mernda train lines. It would provide a direct route to the university and hospital precinct in Parkville from the north and have a stop in Fitzroy North.
Electric vehicle charging stations
The Greens will scrap Labor’s tax on electric vehicles and make EVs more affordable with an eco-bonus of up to $15,000. We’ll install over 1000 more EV chargers, including across the Northcote area at shopping villages including Station St Fairfield, High St Northcote, Northcote Plaza, the Thornbury Village, Miller St Thornbury, and the Preston South Shopping Centre. We’ll subsidise two-way solar chargers on homes and end petrol cars sales from 2030 to tackle the climate crisis.
Restore planning powers to communities
The Greens will put communities before property developer profits by restoring democracy in the planning system. We’ll ensure property developers can’t bypass the community and council on big developments and get approval straight from VCAT, as has happened at the Northcote Plaza redevelopment. These high-rise apartment buildings create little affordable housing, open space or community facilities, and benefit developers rather than the community.
Crisis accommodation for trangender and non-binary people
The Greens will establish a community facility in Northcote that will provide crisis accommodation for trans and gender diverse people, and be a community centre with access to healthcare, resources and peer support. This plan forms part of a range of LGBTIQA+ policies in the Greens $200 million dollar Rainbow State Fund
Fund Northcote Aquatic Centre
The Greens were instrumental in securing the redevelopment of the Northcote Aquatic Centre. This new centre will be Australia’s first gas free, 6 green star aquatic centre. It will feature a new outdoor 50 metre pool, an indoor lane pool, warm water pool, leisure pool, splash pad and learn-to-swim pool as well as group fitness and a gym. This $63.5 million facility is being fully funded by council with minimal support from the state government. The Greens will contribute $10 million to this centre, so the council can pay off the loan sooner and invest more in other local community infrastructure.
Revitalise High St
High St, north of Separation St in Northcote and Thornbury, has become a bustling hub of local shops, but the streetscape has a lot of scope for improvement. The Greens will revitalise this section of High St, making it greener, safer and more inviting with street trees, bike lanes and bike parking, more pedestrian crossings and safety measures, seating, outdoor dining spaces and pop-up shops in vacant shop fronts. We’ll pay for this through our levy on vacant commercial properties, which aims to also have empty shop fronts filled, rather than landbanked.
Pedestrian friendly streets
Pedestrian-friendly streets are essential to keep Northcote healthy, liveable and safe. The Greens will invest $20 million in fixing a number of risk zones, including kids crossing Bell St’s bridge over the Merri Creek to Coburg High School, changing car park access to Bell Station to the west side, Station St at Wingrove Street Fairfield and the Miller St Roundabout. We will also increase safe crossing points along the length of Separation St and High St, and make improvements at the Plenty Rd intersection.
A swimmable Birrarung (Yarra River)
The Greens are committed to making the Birrarung swimmable again within reach of the CBD. We’ll restore riverbanks, increase flows, reduce runoff from buildings, roads and footpaths, and improve the Yarra River Action Plan.
Restore and protect waterways and urban biodiversity
We all love the Merri and Darebin Creeks. The Greens have committed to a $1 billion a year Zero Extinction Fund, which would protect the bush as well as restoring urban biodiversity, creating thousands of jobs in invasive species management, weeding, tree planting and more.
New parklands and playgrounds
The Greens will work with Darebin Council to continue to revitalise and create new parklands. We’ll invest $1 million to create a new parkland at the Fairfield-Alphington Railway Spur, invest $1 million into creating a new parkland and playground on the Northcote Golf Course site, $500,000 for more safe off-leash dog parks, and $1 million to create new outdoor adventure activities, such as rock climbing bouldering walls and a dirt BMX track for kids.
Upgrade the Alphington Bowls Club
The Greens will invest $4.5 million to upgrade the Alphington Bowls Club facilities and amenities, build a better multi-use community space and improve access. This will be a 6 green star equivalent rating with solar panels, insulation and water harvesting.
Fund change rooms for all genders at sports groups
The Greens will enhance girls, women and gender diverse people’s participation in sport by ensuring our sports facilities have equal toilet and change room facilities for all genders. We’ll invest $5 million for the redevelopment of the Bill Lawry Pavilion in Westgarth and others as needed.
Supporting a healthy community
The Greens will invest in community mental health support services for kids and adults and tighten the laws for pokies venues. We’ll also start the work to buy back pokies licences and phase out pokies.
Your vote is powerful.
We’re less than 800 votes away from turning Northcote Green.
Last election there was a 4.3% swing towards the Greens in Northcote – we’ve turned Northcote Green before, and we can do it again.
With more Greens in parliament we can keep the Liberals out and push the government further and faster on climate action, housing affordability and equality.
Volunteer with us
The Greens are proud to be powered by people, not big corporations. All of our big wins have been led by people like you who stepped up to make a difference.
Will you join us and help turn Northcote Green?
