Re-scaling social mix: Public housing renewal in Melbourne

Social mix is a widely used component of urban housing policy in post-welfare states. Problematizing homogenous areas of disadvantage, social mix policies purportedly aspire to increase socioeconomic diversity within defined areas. In Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, a major program of public housing renewal has been underway since the early 2000s, justified by a social mix agenda. This paper investigates the discursive and scalar mechanisms used to justify and advance this policy scheme. First, the paper examines the discursive framing of social mix, demonstrating how this conceals both the commercial real estate drivers and continued government withdrawal from public housing. We then quantify the social mix outcomes of redevelopment, showing that estate renewal actually decreases mix at the neighborhood scale. In the midst of a serious housing crisis in Melbourne, the paper questions the purported social goals of public housing estate renewal and contributes to ongoing debates about social mix and public housing.