Housing targets

The state government has asked the City of Yarra to build 44,000 new homes by 2050. Where will they go?

In January 2026 the state government published Planning Practice Note 90: Planning for Housing. It asks councils to use the new Housing Capacity Assessment Platform (HCAP) to estimate housing capacity. If the capacity isn’t enough, then the council will need to upzone.

HCAP and ATOS

HCAP isn’t publicly accessible; it’s restricted to the Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) and local government strategic planners. However, HCAP incorporates the the Access to Opportunities and Services (ATOS) tool, which provides a score to help identify areas where housing change should occur.

ATOS. Image source: Plan for Victoria Action 1.

ATOS offers six scores for level of access (suitability for housing change). A map of ATOS scores can be downloaded from the DTP.

ATOS scores for Melbourne. Image source: Streets Alive Yarra, using data from the DTP.

Areas suitable for substantial change

Planning Practice Note 90 states that the upper three of six (i.e. the upper half) of ATOS scores are suitable for ‘substantial change’, i.e. suitable for rezoning to support higher density housing.

High ATOS scores means substantial change. Image credit: DTP PPN90.

Following that guidance, the ATOS map can be simplified to show two levels, i.e. ‘substantial change’, i.e. the darker colour in the image below and ‘other’, i.e. the lower three ATOS scores. It’s clear that the ATOS scores suggest that increased housing density should occur in inner city areas, or close to activity centres around train stations.

Two levels of ATOS scores for Melbourne. Image source: Streets Alive Yarra.

Impact on Yarra

With LGA boundaries added, the map shows that most of Yarra is classed as suitable for ‘significant change’, including Princes Hill, Fitzroy North, Clifton Hill, Fitzroy, Collingwood, Abbotsford, Richmond, Cremorne, and Burnley.

Significant change for Yarra. Image credit: Streets Alive Yarra.

Conclusion

ATOS is only one component of the new Housing Capacity Assessment Platform (HCAP), and the results of that assessment (for Yarra) aren’t yet publicly available.

Council may prefer to retain a heritage overlay (HO) in many areas, which acts to restrict housing. If that occurs, then the areas without a heritage overIay will be under increased pressure to supply the required housing.

The state government states that Yarra will go through a ‘separate process‘ from Train and Tram Zone Activity Centres, so we can only wait and see what happens.

Published 17 February 2026.