VIETNAMESE MUSEUM AUSTRALIA SECURES TOWN PLANNING PERMIT
04/07/2022
Dear:
- Religious leaders
- Presidents of the VCA Chapters
- The Vietnamese Veterans Associations in Victoria
- Group and Association Leaders
- Sponsors
- Media
- Members of the Vietnamese community in Australia
Melbourne, AUS 04/07/2022 – Today the Vietnamese Museum Australia (VMA) would like to announce the successful application and approval of a town planning permit to build a museum in Donald Street, Footscray. This is a significant accomplishment for the VMA as it is a major key performance milestone for the project.
After a detailed community consultation process, on Tuesday 24 May, the Maribyrnong City Council unanimously voted to approve the town planning permit for the Museum. Securing the permit is noteworthy for the VMA as it fulfils criteria for both land settlement and Government Funding requirements. It also allows the VMA to commence construction at the end of the year, keeping them on target with project timelines.
There were commendations and comments made by the Councillors regarding the contribution the Vietnamese community has made to Australia, and how well the VMA team and Consultant team have managed the planning process.
The VMA will be Australia’s first museum dedicated to preserving and telling the incredible story of the Vietnamese refugee settlement in Australia. Located in Footscray, Melbourne, the museum will act as a national focal point for Vietnamese communities around Australia.
Quotes attributable to Cr Jorge Jorquera – “I think it’s really important to appreciate this museum project for what it is, which is much more than the cultural hub it will be and is becoming for the Vietnamese community. I think it’s an example to so many other migrant communities from a community that has come before some of the more recent arrivals,
that’s carved out a space in this country without having to junk their culture, without having to junk their history. It’s all the more important to me to see this project succeed for what it is; a museum, a place to celebrate history, to recall those journeys, exactly what so many other communities are still struggling to do…this is a particularly important example and I’m particularly emotional…and happy that we are supporting this project.”
Quotes attributable to Cr Michael Clarke – “A proposal that actually has national significance. The built form will provide a meeting point for the community and will very much cement Footscray as the heart of the Vietnamese community, not just for Melbourne but I would suggest for the nation of Australia, as it should be. The building will be a cultural centre and a is in fact going to be a landmark….”
Yours faithfully,
Hanh Do
VMA Operations Manager
