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21 JULY, 2026

Margaret and Walter Fioritti with fellow protesters who are facing the loss of their homes to the planned Kororoit Creek Regional Park. (Ivan Kemp) 565713_03

Residents revolt By Jack O’Shea-Ayres Residents facing the loss their homes to the planned Kororoit Creek Regional Park are warning the state government’s approach to compulsory acquisition could have far-reaching consequences for property owners across the state. A group of Deanside landowners claims their properties were rezoned more than a decade ago without their knowledge, dramatically reducing property values, before being earmarked for acquisition. Now, as the state government prepares to acquire the land this year, residents say the process has left them fighting not only to save their homes, but also protect what they believe are the property rights of all Victorians. The state government has earmarked $315 million to acquire land and deliver its 6500 hectare Suburban Parks Program, 215 hectares of which is the proposed Kororoit

Creek Regional Park in Deanside. Impacted residents claim they had their land rezoned from Rural Development to Rural Conservation classification in 2012 without their knowledge, which reportedly drove down the values of their residences to approximately 1.7 per cent of the true current market value of surrounding properties. The Firoritti family are among those most impacted by the proposed park and are set to lose 10.5 hectares of their 12.4 hectare property. Margaret Fioroitti said the state government had failed to be transparent. “The government always told us, even though they were taking our land they would pay us for its best use without the park,” Ms Fioritti said. “What they didn’t tell us is our land was worth next to nothing because they’d already rezoned it to take it on the cheap, knowing they wanted to build this park.”

A Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) spokesperson said planning for the new park involved extensive community consultation. “DEECA continues to work with landowners to establish the new Kororoit Creek Regional Park. Kororoit Creek Regional Park will provide significant new open space for Melbourne’s growing western communities while protecting nationally significant biodiversity values, and is informed by years of planning, environmental assessment and community consultation,“ the spokesperson said. Residents campaigning under the ’Fair Go Deanside’ banner said they have been living in limbo for over a decade, battling the state government to exclude their land from the park’s proposed footprint. “The government has never stepped foot on our property to determine the environmental values. Yet they rezoned us to Rural Conservation and devalued our

home without us knowing,” Mrs Firoritti claimed. “We have lived in our home in Deanside for over three decades and the government has taken away our lifestyle and ability to retire comfortably.” Mrs Firoritti said attempts to negotiate changes to the park boundary had failed. The Firoritti family and other impacted residents are calling on the state government for a minor adjustment to the proposed park’s master plan. They’re demanding the park’s boundaries be shifted to exclude their properties as well as the removal of the Rural Conservation overlay on their residential properties. A Melton council spokesperson said “Council has been consulted on the proposal and has communicated residents’ concerns to the Victorian government …and recognises the importance of achieving positive environmental outcomes while also understanding the concerns of affected residents.”

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