King of Christmas: Stephen sparks holiday spirit in Prahran

Stephen is known as the King of Christmas at Bangs Street. 

He moved into our new Prahran development last year and had a bright idea for bringing the community together. 

Stephen is the man behind the Balcony Christmas Lights Competition. There were 71 homes decorated with lights, tinsel and Christmas spirit last year. He wants to make it bigger and better in 2025. 

“It gives me something to look forward to at Christmas time. It is therapy,” Stephen said. 

Stephen came up with the idea to bring residents together while also honouring the memory of his late son. 

“I lost my eldest son 12 years ago and one of the things he really loved was putting up Christmas lights and decorations,” he said. 

“At the start of December, he’d be out putting lights up around the trees out on the front garden when we lived on the farm. 

“I decided when I moved here to ask if I could promote a competition for residents to decorate their balconies with lights and the Community Housing Limited (CHL) team said ‘yes’.” 

Stephen has big plans for this year’s event. He talked about having lights along the pathways, trees and community garden. He is also aiming to attract sponsorship for a Christmas tree. 

The Bangs Street homes were redeveloped with our project partner Building Communities, replacing older homes and increasing the number of social homes by 90%. The project is part of a broader redevelopment to bring more and better homes to the Prahran precinct.  

We completed the project in 2024 and delivered 434 new social, market rental and Specialist Disability Accommodation homes and improved open spaces. 

Stephen was previously living in nearby King Street and was instantly impressed by the Bangs Street homes. He said his favourite feature in his new home is having space for a microwave. 

“It has quite a few things that my old place didn’t have, including a balcony and reverse cycle air-conditioning,” Stephen said. 

“The bedroom has ceiling fans to help you sleep on warm nights. The modern kitchen also has space for a microwave oven.” 

Stephen said his health has improved since moving into Bangs Street and he feels a sense of community and belonging. 

“Since moving into my new home my health is much better. It’s a relaxed atmosphere here, you very rarely hear any noise from neighbours,” he said. 

“I’m hoping that we can grow the community a lot more in the future with all the different, accessible and sustainable activities that will draw everyone together.” 

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