Australia's Defence estate includes some of the country's most complex and historically significant properties. As Defence divests surplus land and facilities, project teams must navigate contamination, heritage, environmental, planning, and infrastructure considerations that influence redevelopment outcomes.
In this Consulting Matters article, Leigh McDonald and Nick Glasson explain why Defence disposals require a multidisciplinary approach from the outset. The future use of a site influences remediation requirements, while heritage constraints, ecology, transport connections, and infrastructure planning all shape redevelopment decisions.
Using examples including Melbourne's Tullamore development, the article explores how integrated planning can transform complex site constraints into opportunities that deliver environmental, community, and commercial value.
The authors argue that redevelopment outcomes depend on bringing together practitioners from contaminated land, planning, transport, water, buildings, infrastructure, ecology, and heritage to create a shared vision for each site's future.
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