Economic Activation and Event grants

The Economic Activation and Event Grants program supports local businesses, organisations and individuals to deliver innovative, creative and interactive activations and experiences and test new ideas in our outdoor public spaces within our activity centres.

The grant supports projects that meet the following objectives and priorities outlined in the Council Plan and its connecting Place-Led Economic Development (PLED) Strategy.

The following key objectives have been identified as priorities:

• increase visitation to our outdoor public places
• increase economic activity in our municipality
• improve place perceptions and experience
• grow the local economy.

The Economic Activation and Events Grants program seeks to fund precinct events and activation projects that:

• act as a drawcard to encourage visitation and awareness of the City of Stonnington's commercial precincts
• provide direct economic benefit to the local businesses within the precincts
• are interactive and showcase local stories and culture
• respond to the specific place add activity and interest to the streetscape and the public realm
• encourage sustainable practices and active transport usage
• engage or collaborate with local communities to encourage greater connection to and pride in the precinct
• support projects that reflect and provide opportunities for the diverse communities of the City of Stonnington’s precincts
• provide economic benefit to traders within the precinct
• increase pedestrian foot traffic and dwell time.

For more information, view the Business Support and Activation Policy(PDF, 1MB).

The City of Stonnington is located in Melbourne's inner southeast, alongside the Yarra River. It includes the suburbs of:

• Armadale
• Kooyong
• Malvern
• Malvern East
• Prahran
• Toorak
• parts of Glen Iris
• South Yarra
• Windsor.

The municipality has a range of precincts that include clusters of local shops to renowned high streets and Australia's largest shopping centre, Chadstone. The precinct activity centres play a significant role in the liveability and character of Stonnington by providing places for socialising, working, shopping and living.

Each of Stonnington's activity centres has its own economic, community and environmental role depending on its size and position and can be categorised in the hierarchy as outlined below.

• Stonnington's larger activity centres: predominately located in the western half of the municipality, have a broader economic role, attracting visitors from within and beyond Stonnington.
• Stonnington's smaller neighbourhood activity centres: predominately located in the eastern half of the municipality, serving a local population and providing day-to-day services for residents and workers.
• Chadstone Shopping Centre: a major hard-top activity centre and a key driver of Stonnington's visitor economy.

All activations must be delivered in one or more of our precincts. Applicants are encouraged to consider minor as well as major precincts. For indoor activations, visit our venue hire options.

Download the site map(PDF, 329KB) . For best results, open on desktop.

The City of Stonnington’s Economic Activation and Event Grants program aims to support creative, innovative, dynamic and contemporary activation projects that are place specific, with the intention to provide economic benefit to local businesses, while enhancing the character of the precinct.

What will be funded

Grants of up to $20,000 are available to support:

• businesses or registered not-for-profits that implement free public and accessible event and activation initiatives that will improve public realm experiences and drive visitation to the City of Stonnington.
• events or activations that are free to the public and accessible to people of all abilities.
• events or activations that are delivered within the program timeline: November 2024 - mid-June 2025.
• events or activations that take place across more than one City of Stonnington precinct or area are especially encouraged.
• events or activations that may be proposed in both indoor and outdoor Council-owned assets, within our commercial precincts.

For the purposes of the City of Stonnington Economic Activation and Event Grants program, an event or activation is defined as an interactive activity that grows visitation, interaction with the local businesses, and increases dwell time and spend within a precinct. It can include a temporary static exhibit or installation.

The event or activation must be temporary in nature and not alter or permanently change the infrastructure within the precinct.

What will not be funded

• Projects taking place outside commercial precincts within the City of Stonnington.
• Projects that do not occur within the grant period November 2024 - mid-June 2025.
• Projects that rely solely on the City of Stonnington for funding (e.g. applicants can only apply for up to 80% of total project costs).
• Projects that are designed to attract visitation to a single business within a precinct rather than attracting visitation to the broader precinct, or that are on private property.
• Proposals for activities such as private functions, dinners and receptions, promotional opportunities or commercial brand activations.
• Events or activations held purely online.
• Activations that are closed to the public or where attendance is by invitation or membership only.
• Projects that have detrimental environmental impact or produce large quantities of waste.
• Structures requiring pegging/digging into ground – Council will only consider weighted temporary structures with the ability to provide proof of safety specifications.

Examples of events and activations that can be considered as part of the Economic Activation and Event Grants program include, but are not limited to:

• small, medium and large events
• festivals
• markets
• fairs, expos and exhibitions
• pop-ups
• street performances
• temporary public art installations
• creative lighting installations
• health and wellbeing activations
• night-time activations.

Examples of activation concepts that can be considered as part of this program include but are not limited to:

• precinct-specific public exhibitions or performances
• temporary public art installations
• creative lighting installations and projections
• temporary public urban garden initiatives
• interactive sustainable initiatives
• community health and wellbeing activities
• outdoor intergenerational activities and games
• experimental participatory art projects with community involvement
• experimental projects in the public realm that lead visitors through a precinct, such as augmented reality trails.

The maximum contribution offered by the City of Stonnington for each event or activation concept is up to $20,000 (including GST). Applicants are expected to make a financial or in-kind contribution of a minimum of 20% of the total project budget to their proposed project, in addition to the funds received from the City of Stonnington.

The City of Stonnington contribution will not cover:

• ongoing operating or general maintenance costs such as staff wages, salaries and remuneration, rent, utilities bills, administration overheads, stock and personal expenditure
• expenditure incurred prior to the program open date.