The City of Melbourne Launches New Fund to Create More Inner-City Green Spaces

The City of Melbourne has today launched a brand new Urban Forest Fund, which will fuel a variety of greening initiatives on both public and private property.

Announced today by Lord Mayor Robert Doyle, the fund will be put to a variety of uses, including the creation of parks, the planting of street trees and the construction of green walls, roofs and facades on buildings around town. The City of Melbourne will allocate $1.2 million to the fund to kick things off. Moreover, the council will partner with philanthropists, property developers, community groups and other Government organisations on further greening projects, while matching private investment in the new fund dollar for dollar.

"Green infrastructure is fundamental to help cities respond to the challenges of climate change, urban heat, flooding and population growth," said Doyle. "As well as protecting us from extreme heat, our trees and parks are a major contributor to Melbourne's liveability."

The City of Melbourne will place particular emphasis on supporting projects on private property. They've gone so far as to create a new online tool that maps rooftops in the municipality, to see if they have the potential to be transformed into green, cool or solar roofs.

The announcement is the latest in a series of new green projects in Melbourne. Southbank Boulevard and the south end of Elizabeth Street are both getting a significant facelift, while a number of the city's laneways are also going green. Next year we're also getting our very first elevated park directly opposite Southern Cross Station.

Image: City of Melbourne.