Hi ANH,

I’m a newcomer to the forum (signed up today) and hope you’ve had some luck in getting the info you require from Council or other sources since late June. I’m a building designer based in the Melbourne SE suburbs and know Monash Council pretty well. (I happen to be doing a development for a client at 5 Wilson St Oakleigh at the moment)

Anyhow, 3m is the usual minimum side clearance under Rescode but they prefer a touch more for garden beds on top of that, ideally 600mm each side. However, for dual occupancies where you’re keeping the front dwelling Council are usually open to consider reduced clearances (within reason).

You may have found you don’t get much concrete feedback when enquiring over-the-counter, just the official line? And over the phone you’d get the same? Next step is to book a pre application meeting with them to discuss your development in detail. In that forum you can get some commitment out of the responsible planning officer about the possibility of a reduced driveway clearance and some valuable feedback on other features of the proposal in terms of site coverage, building massing, neighbourhood character, and so on. For a pre-app meeting you’ll also need a preliminary design to show them (what some designers call a ‘feasibility’ proposal) that may be a 1 to 200 scale site plan with an idea of building footprint and private open space allocations, and a schematic elevation to give them an idea of building style and massing.

Toting my own barge here I must admit (in case of a commission) but let me know if you’d like any further assistance.

Regards,
DTD