SEVEN former Monash school sites that have "lain idle" for up to eight years could help solve Victoria's public housing shortage, council officers have suggested.
On July 13, the Journal reported homelessness in the eastern suburbs had increased by more than 10per cent since 2001.
The Council to Homeless Persons' statistical summary of the Counting the Homeless report showed 1440 people were homeless in the 2006 census in Monash, Whitehorse and Manningham.
This was a rise in homelessness of about 11per cent since the 2001 census.
The report came as Victoria's public housing waiting list hit a seven-year high, with 38,980 people trying to find accommodation.
Monash has seven unused school sites that have been classified as surplus to the Government's needs by the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development.
The school sites that are currently unused include the former site of Monash Special Development School, Monash Secondary College and Clayton West Primary School.
In 2001, Oakleigh South Primary School moved to a new site in Riley Street. Part of the Riley Street site is unused and all of the former Beryl Avenue site is vacant.
The old Monash Primary School site still has some unused buildings on it and part of Brandon Park Secondary College is vacant.
Monash Council director of city development Paul Kearsley told the Journal there was an opportunity for affordable housing at a number of vacant school sites in the municipality .
"The need for affordable housing is expected to increase dramatically in the immediate future and current trends indicate that metropolitan Melbourne can expect to house a million additional people, or 600,000 new households by 2030.
"Funding is available from the Federal Government for housing projects and the development of these sites would provide jobs for local businesses."
South Eastern Metropolitan MP Inga Peulich promised to raise the issue of the vacant school sites with the State Government and said there was a strong need for more affordable housing particularly for Monash's large student population.
However, South Eastern Metropolitan Region MP Gordon Rich-Phillips believed the land should be retained for public open space.
"Of course this doesn't diminish the need for the Government to address homelessness.
"There is clearly a need for the Government to better manage the public housing stock to ensure that urgent needs are met."
Mulgrave MP Daniel Andrews said the DEECD was working with Monash Council to rezone the remainder of the Brandon Park Secondary College site so that excess land could be sold as per normal Government process.
A State Government spokesman said it had no plans for the former school sites but 10 units of affordable housing had been approved in the municipality.
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