Macquarie Street Heritage Precinct (HO19)

HO19 covers part of Macquarie Street and part of Stevedore Street in Williamstown. The citation records them as among the first private streets to be surveyed and subdivided north of Ferguson Street. The precinct still holds very early, pre-1860 houses and commercial buildings, alongside later ones.

Most of the houses are detached, single storey and weatherboard. They are predominantly Victorian, with some Edwardian and Interwar houses that relate to them in scale, materials, siting and form.

What applies here

External paint and tree controls do not apply in HO19; solar energy system controls do, as in the surrounding Private Survey precinct (HO27). The citation adds one thing the table can't show: the basalt kerb and channel in both streets is contributory.

Why this precinct is protected

The citation's statement of significance defines the precinct as:

The Macquarie Street Heritage Precinct, which comprises all land in HO19 and generally includes properties fronting Macquarie Street and Stevedore Street (between Roches Terrace and Rennie Street), Williamstown.

It finds HO19 of local historic, social and aesthetic significance. Historically, its very early buildings, with later ones showing the key phases of Williamstown's development, help explain how the private survey area north of Ferguson Street grew. Aesthetically, it is a relatively intact nineteenth-century residential area, enhanced by individually significant buildings such as the former Alfred Hotel and the early house at 3 Macquarie Street. The citation doesn't set out the reasons for the social rating.

A contributory property is one that adds to the precinct's significance. The citation's key elements are the former Alfred Hotel at 92 Stevedore Street, on the north-west corner of Macquarie Street, built of bluestone and sited at the property line as early hotels in the area typically were; the Victorian group at 80 to 86 Stevedore Street, a double-fronted villa with elaborate verandah detailing and three early weatherboard double-fronted cottages; the unusual double-gable Carpenter Gothic house at 3 Macquarie Street; the intact Interwar bungalows at 5 and 8; and the altered early Victorian houses at 10 and 12, sited irregularly on their blocks.

Early siting is part of the record

Part of what HO19's early buildings record is how they sit. The hotel stands on its property line. The early houses at 10 and 12 Macquarie Street sit irregularly on their blocks. Most other houses sit behind small gardens.

So the setback to follow is usually the one your neighbours share. The 2006 infill guidelines say that where setbacks are staggered or vary, a new building should generally sit within the range of existing setbacks, and match the established orientation. The citation links the hotel's boundary siting to its use as an early hotel.

For extensions, the 2006 alterations guidelines note that early Victorian timber cottages often have room at the rear, and that additions to them should be timber too.

The streets in HO19

The schedule describes the precinct as: 1-19 and 4-18 Macquarie Street and 80-92 Stevedore Street, Williamstown.

Both streets are only partly included, and both also appear in the schedule row for the much larger Private Survey Heritage Precinct (HO27). An address outside these ranges may be in HO27, under the same design guidelines but a different statement of significance, or in no heritage overlay at all. Check your address rather than going by the street name.

The citation treats HO19 as part of the broader Private Survey precinct, closest in period to James Street (HO17) and Cox's Gardens. The planning scheme gives it its own overlay, and the HO27 guide shows how the two fit together.

The citation lists these properties and elements as contributory:

• Macquarie Street (odd) 1-9 and 13-19 (even) 4, 6, 10, 12, 16 and 18
• Stevedore Street (even) 80-86, 90 and 92
• Basalt kerb and channel in Macquarie Street and Stevedore Street

A property inside the boundary but not on the list is still in the overlay, and the 2006 guidelines apply to non-contributory places too.

The rules that decide your application

Private Survey Heritage Precinct Heritage Design Guidelines 2020 applies here. It is an incorporated document, listed in the schedule to Clause 72.04, so it forms part of the planning scheme and council's planners assess applications against it.

It is the same document that governs HO27 and six other precincts. As summarised in the HO27 guide, it treats single-storey scale as the baseline, with double-storey elements set back to minimise visibility from the street. It expects detached houses sited parallel to the frontage unless angled siting is a characteristic of the street, and it describes lot frontages of predominantly 10 to 15 metres, simple symmetrical single or double-fronted forms, horizontal weatherboard and pitched hip or gable roofs.

Council's 2006 guidelines for alterations and additions, and for infill development, in heritage areas apply as well. A rear addition that can't be seen from the street is preferred, and side additions are strongly discouraged.

Can I add a second storey?

There is no numeric height limit. The 2006 alterations guidelines use a sight line instead, drawn in section from eye level (1.7 metres above the ground) on the opposite side of the street, over your roof to the rear of the block. A second storey below that line has minimal visibility from the street. Street width and front setback move the line, so a figure from another street means little for yours.

The guidelines also want a second storey well back from the façade, behind the main ridgeline, set in from the side walls and no higher than adjacent buildings. Check the roof first: most roofs of 30 degrees pitch or more should be checked for room for an attic storey. On a corner block, such as the hotel's, there are more sight lines, and an addition needs to be designed for every street elevation.

Fences, garages and the details

• The basalt kerb and channel is contributory, and the 2006 guidelines discourage new vehicle crossovers.
• Street fences are generally not original: timber picket, steel, brick and woven wire. The guidelines say no new front fence should be over 1300 mm, and that it should match the street's heights and materials.
• The citation notes that many houses have been altered. The guidelines say original elements such as a verandah should only be reinstated where there is enough evidence to do it accurately.
• Garages and carports in the front setback are not favoured. Beside the house they should sit at least 2 metres behind the front façade, and double garages are not favoured.
• External paint controls do not apply, but the guidelines say never-painted surfaces should stay unpainted and paint should never be sandblasted off masonry, which matters for bluestone buildings like the hotel.
• New work should be distinguishable from the old: no replicated period detail, and simple detailing on additions.

What gets approved here

This section will carry the local permit record — application volumes, approval rates, what refused applications were attempting, and any VCAT decisions. That analysis is in progress and will be published with its method and limits stated.

What to do next

Ask council for pre-application advice. A free call with a planner, before anything is drawn — the most useful hour in the process.

Then check your address to confirm which precinct you are actually in. A Clarity Consultation is a focused session on your specific house; Confidence to Buy applies the same thinking before you bid.

Browse every Hobsons Bay heritage precinct.

Sources: control table and precinct extent transcribed from the Hobsons Bay Planning Scheme, Schedule to Clause 43.01 (C133hbay, gazetted 11/02/2026), read 27 October 2026. Significance from the Hobsons Bay Heritage Study 2006 citation for the Macquarie Street Heritage Precinct (Victorian Heritage Database place 22447). Design guidance from the Private Survey Heritage Precinct Heritage Design Guidelines 2020 as summarised in the HO27 guide, and from Hobsons Bay City Council's Guidelines for Alterations and Additions to Dwellings in Heritage Areas in Hobsons Bay and Guidelines for Infill Development in Heritage Areas in Hobsons Bay (both 2006). This is a plain-English summary written by a registered architect. It is not planning advice and the planning scheme governs.