Council targets unsightly commercial properties in Frankston CBD
Published on 06 June 2025
Frankston City Council is targeting dilapidated and unsightly commercial properties as part of its ongoing city centre revitalisation program, with 15 per cent properties identified as needing improvement.
Audits of 446 commercial properties in the CBD by Council’s Rapid Response team over the last year identified 65 properties that failed to meet municipal amenity requirements under Council’s local laws.
While some owners have taken steps to rectify their properties after receiving formal notices, Council is now taking a range of other enforcement actions on remaining landlords, including issuing infringement notices, and taking action in court.
The commercial property audits are a first for Frankston City and sit alongside a range of other CBD revitalisation programs, including the Young Street Action Plan launched last year, the Vacant Land Differential Rate proposed in the Revenue and Rating Plan 2025-2029, and the Nepean Boulevard Revitalisation Project.
Under Frankston City Council’s Community Local Laws, property owners must maintain buildings in good repair and not allow them to become unsightly or dilapidated due to age, neglect, poor maintenance or misuse.
Officers may deem a property unsightly if graffiti is not removed, the property is unclean or has minor damage, while properties that are in disrepair or in partial ruin, may be deemed dilapidated.
Council has long supported local businesses through initiatives such as business grants, facade improvement grants and business to business grants, as well as capability-building and advocacy via the Frankston Business Collective and the Committee for Frankston and Mornington Peninsula, both of which Council continues to support.
Council is also proposing to limit the average increase in commercial rates for 2025-2026 to approximately 2 per cent, below the Victorian Government’s rate cap of 3 per cent, and also below the current annual inflation rate.
Frankston Council Mayor Kris Bolam said despite Council offering significant support to local businesses and landlords to help improve the local economy and streetscape, some property owners were not doing their bit to keep the city presentable.
“It’s imperative, at this juncture in Frankston’s transformation from a seaside town to a regional city, that local business owners play their part. With more people choosing to invest, work or live in our city, it's essential that all property owners, especially those in our city centre, step up to uplift the state of their buildings.”
"We don't want skid row, we want commercial shopfronts that inspire confidence"
Bernadine Geary, Frankston Business Collective CEO said well-maintained streetscapes played an important role in attracting both customers and investors.
“Our buildings and shop fronts are part of the CBD experience – if we want more people to visit and spend money in our city centre, then property owners must do their bit to maintain our streetscapes.”
The clean-up campaign follows Counci’s proposed differential rate for vacant commercial properties in the city centre and along the Nepean Highway. The proposal, which goes before Council on 23 June, aims to encourage the development of vacant and land-banked properties by applying a differential rate for vacant sites three times higher than the general rate from next financial year.
Council is also investing in a revitalised Young Street precinct, with a range of community safety, business support and beautification initiatives underway to improve one of the city’s busiest gateways. This includes increased patrols by Rapid Response teams, daily street cleaning and graffiti removal, and more support for vulnerable community members through the Community Connectors program
In April the Federal Government committed $50 million towards Nepean Highway improvements, including upgrades to the Overton Road and Nepean Highway intersection, with the potential for a range of a city-shaping projects that will change how we move through and enjoy our city.
And last week construction commenced on the $140 million 14-story Harbour residential development at 446-450 Nepean Highway, which will further accelerate our city centre transformation by offering more housing choice, creating homes in the heart of our CBD and boosting local businesses.
Yamala Ward Councillor Nathan Butler, whose ward include central Frankston, welcomed the crackdown, saying: “Governments are heavily investing, and with our Frankston Metropolitan Activity Centre (FMAC) structure plan now approved and the cornerstone of our planning laws, private development is taking off in a big way.
“It's time for commercial property owners to match the government investment being channelled into our CBD, and to ensure our city centre reflects the best of Frankston City.”
Council will continue a regular ongoing audit program to ensure shopfronts contribute to a vibrant, welcoming CBD, with revenue from infringements being reinvested to support monitoring and compliance.
Reports of unsightly or dilapidated buildings can be made by calling Frankston City Council on 1300 322 322, via our website at Report an issue - Frankston City Council, or using Snap Send Solve.