A $1B precinct, featuring six towers with apartments, a hotel and supermarket, has been approved for Southbank under new planning rules.

The project will be the size of the MCG and include laneways, a public square, a 2770sq m park and a childcare centre.

Currently a carpark, the Kavanagh St site is bounded by the West Gate Freeway, Power and Baston streets.

It will have more than 2600 units in four towers, a commercial building and a 687-room hotel and serviced apartment tower with heights ranging from 145m to 226m.

media_camera The development will hold around 2600 units in four towers.

Designed by Cox Architecture, the buildings will feature rooftop gardens, while a retail area will include shops and a hawker-style food court.

Malaysian group PD Development Holdings amended its plans for the project after the State Government introduced new interim height and plot ratio controls last September.

Design changes for the site include widened setbacks and altered building angles to minimise overshadowing.

Planning Minister Richard Wynne said the new design, backed by the City of Melbourne, had allowed for height and density while providing significant open space.

He rejected claims that the Government’s interim controls had stifled inner-city development by requiring tower proposals to be scaled back.

“This year I have approved a record more than $5 billion worth of inner-city projects, which will continue to create jobs and allow more people to live around the city,” he said.

“This project shows how our new CBD controls promote development which gives something back to the city — it will create an accessible and well-serviced space for people to live and work.”

john.masanauskas@news.com.au