Council & Politics
2 July, 2025
New homes earmarked for Prestige site
ONE of the most significant sites in Ararat is set to be redeveloped under plans confirmed this week by Ararat Rural City Council.
The Prestige Fabrics site at the corner of Lowe and Wilson Streets has sat empty for decades, but the owners have recently come to an agreement with council for it to be developed into a 90 lot housing estate.
Council CEO Dr Tim Harrison said it will be a game changing project for Ararat which will transform a derelict site into something to be proud of.
“Obviously that Prestige site has needed something done to it for quite some time.
“We’ve been very fortunate to have received a $7.3 million grant from the Federal Government to provide trunk infrastructure to get development happening on that site. It was one of five programs funded in Victoria, it was a very competitive process, we put in a very strong application and we were successful.
Dr Harrison said he was delighted that council has negotiated a great outcome for the eleven acre site.
“This will be a great partnership between council and the owners of the Prestige site and we’re really looking forward to get cracking,” he said.
Dr Harrison said the funding stipulates that the majority of the homes must be affordable for working families.
“The requirements of the funding are we deliver 90 properties and that 70 per-cent of those are in that affordable range. Affordable housing is a very broad term, it’s really about making sure they can be afforded by working families,” he said.
Dr Harrison said work has already commenced on the site in preparation for infrastructure like roads and gutters and connection to utilities.
“We’ve already started to see some action on that site from the funding provided. We’ve got the last bits of the old Prestige building being removed. If you dive past the site you will see a massive pile of rubble there and that’s currently being taken away.
“After that, we’ll start to work on the drainage, the sewage, the water, the supply of electricity and NBN connection to that site. At the end of that period we will have some roads in place giving access to the lots,” Dr Harrison said.
“This is one of those projects we have wanted to do for decades in Ararat. The location of the site is brilliant and I guess it has just been a big gap in that part of Ararat. It will be fantastic to see some action,” he said.
The Prestige site has been owned by the Samuel family since 2015.
Shoba Samuel told the Advocate her family was delighted a firm plan for the site had been reached.
“It has been difficult, obviously with everything going on with COVID it kind of put a pause on our development plans. Obviously we’ve semi demolished the site and we are looking at providing a brand new community for the Ararat township,” she said.
Ms Samuel said a number of options have been suggested for the site over the years.
“There were lots of plans we were throwing around over the course of the period we have owned the land since 2015.
“We are looking forward to working with council to get all the infrastructure up and going so we can provide a community and sense of belonging to the Ararat community.
“We feel honoured and blessed to be able to partner with the council in doing this project and delivering a substantial development,” Ms Samuel said.
Labor Senator Raff Ciccone said he was delighted to help facilitate funding to get the project off the ground.
“In Ararat, the Albanese Labor Government is doing the essential work of delivering enabling infrastructure to get more homes built, faster.
“The Housing Support Program is a critical part of our work with states and territories to help them meet the ambitious national target to build 1.2 million new homes.
“For a decade, local infrastructure was ignored by successive Coalition governments, but we are investing in our local communities when they would not,” Senator Ciccone said.
Council CEO Dr Tim Harrison said while the mix and design of housing is yet to be done, it will be sensitive to an historic cemetery at the southern end.