City of Yarra welcomes Collingwood Football Club's Victoria Park investment
The City of Yarra has welcomed the significant investment the Collingwood Football Club to make in improvements to the surface of Victoria Park.
The City of Yarra has welcomed the significant investment from the Collingwood Football Club to make in improvements to the surface of Victoria Park.
The Collingwood Football Club will invest approximately $2 million to undertake groundworks required to bring the ground up to a standard that will rank it as one of the AFLW’s best facilities. The ground is also used by Collingwood’s VFL team, as well as the Fitzroy Junior Football Club and recreational leagues.
In return for the investment, Collingwood has requested access during those times where it is currently used by the AFL umpires, but not at a time before the AFL is able to find the umpires a new base.
Victoria Park has a history as one of Melbourne’s storied football venues, that more recently, thanks to the work of the Yarra City Council, has become one of the great community spaces in the inner city.
“I honestly believe the transformation of Victoria Park into a community facility is one of the best things this council has done,” said Yarra City Council Mayor, Stephen Jolly.
“However, the popularity and heavy use of the ground over recent years have resulted in a fair bit of wear and tear that means it now requires resurfacing to bring it up to standard as an AFLW and VFL venue.”
Cr Jolly said that Collingwood’s investment in the playing surface means the venue would result in an even greater facility for the local community.
“While locals and their dogs will not be able to use the ground during the summer, once complete, Victoria Park will be an even better community space, as well as returning to its place as one of Melbourne’s great football ovals.”
Victoria Park surface works were originally expected to commence in late 2025 but have been postponed until October 2026.
Victoria Park Upgrade FAQs
Victoria Park is a much-loved asset for the City of Yarra and in particular the local Abbotsford community. To ensure the site continues to stand up to its high usage, works are expected to commence October 2026.
The works will ensure the site is more resilient for the community and support the Collingwood Football Club’s (CFC) Australian Football League Women (AFLW) and Victorian Football League (VFL/W) teams to train and play at the ground – in the timeslots currently allocated to the AFL umpires.
Council has authorised the Collingwood Football Club and the AFL to directly undertake construction work to rehabilitate the playing surface and upgrade the sportsfield lighting. Council officers will supervise these works.
Works are expected to commence from October 2026.
Yes, the playing surface will be totally replaced with works expected to commence from October 2026.
During this time, there will be no activities permitted on the playing surface to ensure works can be completed safely and as quickly as possible.
The surrounding facilities will not be impacted during construction.
Works will be funded by the AFL and Collingwood Football Club, not Council. This is a fantastic outcome for Council, the facility will be upgraded for the community at no cost to rate payers.
Collingwood Football Club will take responsibility for maintenance of the playing surface once works are completed.
Community can access the nearby Quarries Park and Yarra Bend Park, which includes areas where dogs can be off-lead in some areas, including the Deep Rock area and the section of the Dights Falls Loop Trail that runs alongside the park.
No, community access will be unchanged after the works are completed.
The Fitzroy Junior Football Club will also continue to use the facilities for training and the Renegades Pub Football League will continue to play games at Victoria Park.
Works will be carried out according to normal construction hours.
In the City of Yarra, the standard permitted construction hours are Monday to Friday, 7:00 am to 6:00 pm, and Saturday, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm.
It’s not anticipated that local streets will be adversely impacted by the construction works. Construction activities can generally be accommodated within the site. If traffic is to be impacted, a traffic management plan will be developed and submitted to Council for approval and monitoring.
The contractor will be required to manage the site according to normal construction obligations across Yarra. These can be found at Council’s website.
Collingwood Football Club will use the facilities to support their AFLW and VFLW teams in the years ahead.
Collingwood has an existing lease agreement for some of the surrounding facilities, so this investment supports the club in the years ahead. It’s important to note that any future lease discussion in relation to surrounding facilities isn’t linked to this playing surface investment.
Any upgrade to the sportsfield lighting will be subject to planning permission.
If a planning permit is required, Collingwood Football Club will apply for this permit when it is ready to upgrade the lighting and locals will have an opportunity to have their say. Best practice sportsfield lighting design avoids unnecessary light spill into nearby residential areas.
No activities will be permitted at Victoria Park during the construction period. We have notified all permit holders of these changes and have advised them of nearby parks including Gahan Reserve, Charles Mollison Place, St Phillips Reserve (next to Collingwood Town Hall).