Melbourne CBD has a tonne of laneways, arteries running through its heart, and the City of Melbourne is looking to green them up, with your help!
The Green Your Laneway project aims to green up to four laneways in the city by getting people to nominate laneways in the central city that they would like to see made into a green oasis. With over 300 nominations already, it’s going to be a tough job to pick these four out!
Around 80% of Melbourne CBD residents live in apartments with very limited greenery. The Green Your Laneway project is aimed to provide these residents with a place to relax, socialise, and breathe in some clean, green, air.
Did You Know:
Greenery can help to reduce stress as well as boost your mood?
A green laneway, apart from looking AMAZING, will provide many environmental benefits as well as social benefits for the people who live, work, and play in the CBD.
Did You Know:
A maintained green laneway not only looks good, it can help to cool the city, slow down floodwaters, and increase the value of property?
Unfortunately, not every laneway is ideal for this project, so firstly, the City of Melbourne needs to decide which laneways are best and what green practices will be suitable for them.
“Within the CBD we’ve mapped the lanes we could access – occasionally lanes are blocked off – but we assessed over 200 lanes in our study. We are inspired by some urban parks in international cities – including Paley Park in New York City and John F Collins Park in Philadelphia. The pilot project will help us understand whether community members want to contribute to these projects, including looking after plants. We will also understand the longer term maintenance requirements of these spaces. “ – Cr. Arron Wood, Chair of the City of Melbourne’s Environment Portfolio
Check out the Growing Green Guide here for information on plants that are specific to laneways and a guide to how the City of Melbourne plans for the Green Your Laneway project.
Stay tuned for updates as the Green Your Laneway project unfolds!
