{"id":"geelong-lands-steampacket-place-act-1996","name":"Geelong Lands (Steampacket Place) Act 1996","slug":"geelong-lands-steampacket-place-act-1996","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"vic","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":174141,"registerId":"vic-geelong-lands-steampacket-place-act-1996-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Geelong Lands (Steampacket Place) Act 1996","content":"Version No. 003\n\n**Geelong Lands (Steampacket Place) Act 1996**\n\n**No. 30 of 1996**\n\nVersion as at  \n6 September 2012\n\n**table of provisions**\n\n*Section Page*\n\n1 Purpose 1\n\n2 Commencement 1\n\n3 Powers to lease reserved Crown land 2\n\n4 Powers to lease Crown land which is not reserved 3\n\n__________________\n\nSCHEDULE—Land in Geelong to Which this Act Applies 5\n\nENDNOTES 6\n\n1. General Information 6\n\n2. Table of Amendments 7\n\n3. Explanatory Details 8\n\n**Version No.** **003**\n\n**Geelong Lands (Steampacket Place) Act 1996**\n\n**No. 30 of 1996**\n\nVersion as at  \n6 September 2012\n\n**Preamble**\n\nFurther development is being proposed for land on Corio Bay in Geelong. As part of that process it is now proposed that Crown land in the area of the development be capable of being leased for longer periods and for different purposes from those set out in the **Land Act 1958** and the **Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978**.\n\n**The Parliament of Victoria therefore enacts as follows:**\n\n\t1 Purpose\n\nThe purpose of this Act is to enable the granting of long term leases for certain land in Geelong.\n\n\t2 Commencement\n\n(1) Section 1 and this section come into operation on the day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent.\n\n(2) Subject to subsection (3), the remaining provisions of this Act come into operation on a day or days to be proclaimed.\n\n(3) If a provision referred to in subsection (2) does not come into operation before 1 January 1998, it comes into operation on that day.\n\n\t3 Powers to lease reserved Crown land\n\ns. 3\n\n(1) The manager of any reserved land in the area shown by hatching on the plan in the Schedule may grant a lease of that land for the purposes of the construction or occupation of substantial buildings and works on the land.\n\n(2) The manager must not grant a lease under subsection (1) unless the Minister has approved the granting of the lease in writing to the manager.\n\n(3) The Minister must not approve the granting of a lease under subsection (1) unless the Minister has satisfied himself or herself that—\n\n(a) the lease provides for buildings and works of such a substantial nature and value, and there are other circumstances of the lease which are such as to justify a lease for a term of more than 21 years; and\n\n(b) if the lease is for a purpose other than the purpose for which the land is reserved, the lease is not detrimental to the purpose for which the land is reserved.\n\n(4) A lease granted under subsection (1) must not be for an initial term of more than 50 years.\n\n(5) A lease granted under subsection (1)—\n\n(a) may contain provision for the term of the lease to be extended one or more times, but—\n\n(i) each extension of the term must not exceed 21 years; and\n\n(ii) the aggregate of the initial term and any extensions of the term must not exceed 99 years; and\n\n(b) may contain provision for a lessee to remain in occupation of the land under the same terms and conditions as existed under the lease, at the discretion of the lessor, for a period of not more than 3 months from the expiry of the lease; and\n\n(c) is subject to any covenants, exceptions, reservations and conditions that are determined by the manager and approved by the Minister.\n\n(6) This section has effect despite anything to the contrary in the **Land Act 1958**, the **Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978** or regulations made under section 13 of the **Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978**.\n\n(7) In this section—\n\n***manager*** means—\n\n(a) in the case of reserved land which is managed by Trustees or a Committee of Management, the Trustees or Committee of Management; and\n\n(b) in the case of reserved land which is not managed by Trustees or a Committee of Management, the Minister;\n\n***reserved land*** means land reserved under the **Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978**.\n\n\t4 Powers to lease Crown land which is not reserved\n\ns. 4\n\n(1) The Minister may grant a lease of any Crown land, which is not reserved land, in the area shown by hatching on the plan in the Schedule for the purposes of the construction or occupation of substantial buildings and works on that land for amusement and recreation purposes.\n\n(2) The Minister must not grant a lease under subsection (1) unless he or she is satisfied that the lease provides for buildings and works of such a substantial nature and value, and there are other terms of the lease which are such as to justify a lease for a term of more than 21 years.\n\n(3) A lease under subsection (1) must not be for an initial term of more than 21 years.\n\n(4) A lease granted under subsection (1) may contain—\n\n(a) provision for the term of the lease to be extended one or more times, but—\n\n(i) each extension of the term must not exceed 21 years; and\n\n(ii) the aggregate of the initial term and any extensions of the term must not exceed 50 years; and\n\n(b) provision for a lessee to remain in occupation of the land under the same terms and conditions as existed under the lease, at the discretion of the lessor, for a period of not more than 3 months from the expiry of the lease.\n\ns. 4\n\n(5) This section has effect despite anything to the contrary in the **Land Act 1958**.\n\n(6) In this section ***reserved land*** has the same meaning as in section 3.\n\n__________________\n\nSCHEDULE\n\nSch.\n\nLand in Geelong to Which this Act Applies\n\n![]()\n\nENDNOTES\n\nEndnotes\n\n1. General Information\n\n\n*Minister's second reading speech—*\n\n*Legislative Assembly: 12 September 1996*\n\n*Legislative Council: 9 October 1996*\n\nThe long title for the Bill for this Act was \"to enable the granting of long term leases for certain land in Geelong and for other purposes.\"\n\nThe **Geelong Lands (Steampacket Place) Act 1996** was assented to on 22 October 1996 and came into operation as follows:\n\nSections 1 and 2 on 22 October 1996: section 2(1); rest of Act on 1 January 1998: section 2(3).\n\n1. Table of Amendments\n\n\nEndnotes\n\nThere are no amendments made to the **Geelong Lands (Steampacket Place) Act 1996** by Acts and subordinate instruments.\n\n1. Explanatory Details\n\n\nEndnotes\n\nNo entries at date of publication.","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"},"summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Based on the available information, the Act appears to remain focused on its original purpose — addressing specific land matters at Steampacket Place, Geelong. There is no evidence from the material provided of scope expansion beyond the original intent. The Act remains in force in its as-made form with no apparent amendments noted in the version history."},"complexity_factors":["Narrow, site-specific scope limits complexity — it applies to a defined parcel of land rather than broad legal principles","Acts of this type typically contain straightforward land transfer or vesting provisions","Victorian Crown land legislation of this era follows well-established legal templates","Insufficient full text was provided to identify any genuinely complex provisions, cross-references, or conditions","Likely contains limited operative sections given its single-purpose nature"],"plain_english_summary":"This Act deals with Crown land in Geelong’s Steampacket Place precinct and is aimed at enabling particular land dealings or development there. It chiefly affects developers, local government, leaseholders and members of the public who use the area.\n\nIt matters because it provides specific legislative authority to change the legal status, transfer or enable development of that land—action not possible under general land laws alone."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":5,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act implements its stated purpose—to enable long‑term leases for certain land in Geelong—by creating bespoke leasing powers and limits for the named area. It does not expand beyond that objective but does modify the legal framework for that area by overriding the Land Act 1958 and Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978 within the Schedule area (see s.3(6) and s.4(5))."},"complexity_factors":["Different legal regimes for reserved versus unreserved Crown land, creating parallel rules to apply in the same geographic area (sections 3 and 4).","Significant ministerial discretion to approve leases based on qualitative satisfaction about 'substantial nature and value' and non‑detriment to reserve purposes (s.3(3), s.4(2)).","Managers' role varies by management type (Trustees/Committee or Minister) and requires ministerial sign‑off for reserved land leases (s.3(1)–(3); definition of manager).","Complex term limits and extension arithmetic (initial caps, per‑extension caps, and aggregate maximums differ between reserved and unreserved land) increasing drafting and compliance risk (s.3(4)–(5); s.4(3)–(4)).","Express overrides of the Land Act 1958 and Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978 within the specified area, creating an island of bespoke law and interpretation issues (s.3(6); s.4(5)).","Narrow geographic scope tied to the Schedule map concentrates legal effects and raises implementation dependencies on precise mapping and plan interpretation (Schedule).","Low statutory detail on rent, valuation, public consultation or compensation creates administrative discretion and potential for contingent transaction costs (absence across the Act)."],"plain_english_summary":"**This Act lets the government grant long‑term leases over specified Crown land at Steampacket Place for construction or occupation of substantial buildings and works.** It changes who can lease (managers or the Minister), who approves leases (the Minister) and the maximum initial and extended lease terms for reserved and unreserved land.\n\nThe stated purpose is to enable long‑term development; the effect is to shift choice to private lessees who pay rent and build, while increasing ministerial discretion and compliance checks on substantial‑value tests."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly scoped to its original purpose. The Act was always intended as specific 'spot legislation' for the Steampacket Place development in Geelong, and it has not expanded beyond this. The endnotes confirm no amendments have been made since enactment in 1996."},"complexity_factors":["Very short statute: only 4 operative sections plus a Schedule","Only 2 defined terms ('manager' and 'reserved land'), both clearly defined in section 3","Simple conditional structure: basic 'if-then' approval requirements without nested exceptions","No cross-references to other legislation except explicit override clauses (sections 3(6) and 4(5))","Single purpose legislation with straightforward temporal limits (21/50/99 year caps)","No delegated legislation or regulation-making powers","Geographic scope limited to one hatched area on a single plan"],"plain_english_summary":"This is a short, specific law that allows the Victorian Government to grant long-term leases on a particular patch of Crown land (government-owned land) in Geelong, near Corio Bay, known as Steampacket Place.\n\n**What it does:**\nNormally, Victorian laws limit how long Crown land can be leased and what it can be used for. This Act creates special exceptions for this specific Geelong site, allowing:\n- **For reserved land** (land set aside for a specific public purpose like parks or recreation): Leases of up to 50 years initially, extendable to a maximum of 99 years total, for building substantial structures.\n- **For non-reserved Crown land**: Leases of up to 21 years initially, extendable to a maximum of 50 years total, specifically for \"amusement and recreation purposes.\"\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- Developers or businesses wanting to build on this specific waterfront land in Geelong\n- The local community (through potential changes to public land use)\n- The Minister and land managers who must approve any leases\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis is a classic example of \"spot legislation\" — a law written for one specific location to bypass normal planning restrictions. It was designed to facilitate a particular development project on Geelong's waterfront by allowing longer leases than would normally be permitted, making commercial development more attractive to investors who need long-term security."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/geelong-lands-steampacket-place-act-1996","history":"/api/acts/geelong-lands-steampacket-place-act-1996/history","analysis":"/api/acts/geelong-lands-steampacket-place-act-1996/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/geelong-lands-steampacket-place-act-1996/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/geelong-lands-steampacket-place-act-1996/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/geelong-lands-steampacket-place-act-1996/documents"}}