Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan City of Greater Bendigo - Prepared by: Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd Prepared for: City of Greater ...
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Strathdale Commercial
Precinct Structure Plan
City of Greater Bendigo
Prepared by: Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd
Prepared for: City of Greater Bendigo
Date: Adopted June 2010
RENAISSANCE Planning Pty Ltd
Suite 307/91 Murphy Street
Richmond Victoria 3121
ABN 91 796 676 210 ACN 094 933 972
strategic planners | urban designers | economists | landscape architects
Tel: (03) 9428 1116
Fax: (03) 9428 9077
admin@rplan.com.au
www.renaissanceplanning.com.au
©Copyright, Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd, June 2009
This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under Copyright Act 1963, no
part may be reproduced without written permission of Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd
Disclaimer: Neither Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd nor any member of employee
of Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd takes responsibility in any way whatsoever to any
person or organisation (other than that for which this report has been prepared) in
respect of the information set out in this report, including any errors or omissions
herein. Renaissance Planning is not liable for errors in plans, specifications,
documentation or other advice not prepared or designed by Renaissance Planning.
2 Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd
CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 5
1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Study Area 11
2 CONTEXT
2.1 Policy 15
2.2 Location/Role 20
2.3 Demography 25
2.4 Social, Community and Retailing Needs 30
2.5 Setting and Physical Structure 33
2.6 Integrated Access Considerations 36
3 VISION AND COMMUNITY VALUES
3.1 Community Values 43
3.2 Vision Statement 44
3.3 Key Planning Issues 45
4 STRATEGIC DIRECTIONS
4.1 What is a Structure Plan? 49
4.2 What are strategic directions? 49
4.3 Village Heart 50
4.4 Open Space and Pedestrian Network 53
4.5 Connection to Bendigo CBD 57
4.6 Diversity of Housing 57
4.7 Permeability 58
4.8 Sustainability in Design 58
4.9 Legibility 59
4.10 Living Community 59
4.11 Renew the pedestrian scale 60
5 STRUCTURE PLAN
5.1 Purpose 63
5.2 Component Planning areas 63
5.3 Village Core 66
5.4 Boulevard 73
5.5 Strath-Haven 76
5.6 Lakeside 81
5.7 Strath Hill 84
5.8 Lowndes 85
5.9 Central Victorian Innovation Park 89
5.10 Village Life 91
6 IMPLEMENTATION FRAMEWORK
Village Core 95
Boulevard 95
Strath-Haven 96
Lakeside 96
Strath Hill 97
Lowndes 97
Central Victorian Innovation Park 97
Village Life 98
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 3
CONTENTS (Cont.)
FIGURES
Figure 1.1: Study Area 12
Figure 2.1: Strathdale Catchment Area 17
Figure 2.2: Bendigo Village Centres: Developed Floorspace 18
Figure 2.3: Bendigo Village Centres: Developed and Approved Floorspace 19
Figure 2.4: Bendigo Activity Centres: Proportion of all trips by car 21
Figure 2.5: Strathdale Catchment Area 24
Figure 2.6: Strathdale Main Trade Area and Greater Bendigo Age Structures 27
Figure 2.7: Relative Concentrations of Key Demographic Measures 28
Figure 2.8: Location of Car Parks 39
Figure 4.1: Pedestrian Space and Opportunities Plan 52
Figure 4.2: Strathdale Core Circulation Plan 55
Figure 4.3: Strathdale Central Area Pedestrian Space Plan 56
Figure 5.1: Precinct and Component Areas 64
Figure 5.2: Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan 65
Figure 5.3: Strath Village/Kennington Village Square 71
Figure 5.4: Cnr Condon/Edwards Street Sketch Plan Indicative Building 72
Figure 5.4: Cnr Condon Edwards Street, Visible Transparent Building 72
Figure 5.6: Central Area Design Concept 78
Figure 5.7: Strath-Haven Indicative Concepts 79
Figure 5.8: Set of Figures - Proposed Pedestrian Link Strath Village to
Kennington Reservoir via Strath-Haven 80
Figure 5.9: Landscape Thematic Treatment 83
Figure 5.10: Strath Hill Sketch Elevations 87
Figure 5.11: Strath Hill Draft Development Concept 88
PHOTOS
Photo 2.1: Strath Hill Centre 23
Photo 2.2: Strath Village Shopping Centre 32
Photo 2.3: View east along Condon Street 35
Photo 2.4: View north along Crook Street 35
Photo 2.5: View across Crook Street to Strath Haven aged care facilities 35
Photo 2.6: View across Crook Street south west to Condon Street 35
Photo 5.1: Strath Village Shopping Centre 70
Photo 5.2: View of Kennington Reservoir 70
Photo 5.3: Edwards Road and Lowndes Street looking east 86
Photo 5.4: Edwards Road and Lowndes Street looking north 86
Photo 5.5: Edwards Road and Lowndes Street looking south 86
Photo 5.6: Edwards Road and Lowndes Street looking west 86
4 Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Vision The vision for the Strathdale Commercial Precinct will be an attractive, pedestrian focussed and safe place that is vibrant and friendly meeting a diversity of local and district needs. All that we do in the Strathdale Commercial Precinct will be: • socially inclusive and family friendly; • safe and sustainable; • building a village feel; and • customer and user focussed. Commercial Precinct Overview The Strathdale Commercial Precinct is a designated village centre serving the eastern and south-eastern suburbs of Greater Bendigo. It is located approximately three kilometres south-east of the Bendigo Central Business District (CBD) in the suburb of Strathdale. Village centres are supermarket-based activity centres and intended to serve the city’s residential and ex-urban districts, and to provide a diversity of retailing, commercial, professional leisure and community services, together with opportunities for new forms of residential accommodation. The Strathdale Commercial Precinct is an active and successful village centre. It serves a district population of approximately 27,500 people (2009) that is projected to grow to 32,000 people by 2021. Most of the precincts projected retail and office floorspace requirements for the next decade and beyond are being met by the Aldi development and the approved Kennington Village development. The precinct is focussed at the intersection of Condon Street and Edwards Road and has evolved as a series of freestanding building masses, separated from the road network and each other by extensive car parking and unco-ordinated landscaping. Moreover, there are no pedestrian focal places and spaces in the precinct, and gathering spaces for shoppers and visitors are confined to the internal arcades of the Strath Village shopping centre, the edge spaces of the Strath Hill centre or areas within the McDonalds restaurant. Two of the key issues that the Structure Plan addressed arose directly from the assessment of its current physical setting. This indicated that the current isolated forms and the lack of quality pedestrian space and amenity are significant deficiencies in the Strathdale Commercial Precinct. The need for attractive and amenable spaces as meeting places for the community was identified in the stakeholder and community visioning process. These needs were central requirements of the Structure Plan which was directed to achieve a village heart for the local community interconnected by a network of attractive pedestrian focussed spaces. The Structure Plan also focussed on the need to provide a framework for the long term transformation of the precinct as an urban Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 5
street-based form.
The Structure Plan is guided by a set of strategic directions that should be considered to be its basic building blocks.
These have established the underlying principles and rationale of the Plan. The key directions that contribute to the
Structure Plan encompass:
• creating a strong recognisable heart for the Precinct,
• creation of a hierarchy of pedestrian and open space linkages,
• facilitating strong public transport connections to the Bendigo CBD,
• providing for a diversity of housing,
• ensuring ‘permeability’ in the local area: a diverse network of access routes and options,
• ensuring sustainability within design,
• providing ‘legibility’ or defining pathways and directions to facilitate wayfinding,
• enhancing a living and diverse community,
• renewing the pedestrian scale.
Precinct and Component Areas
For the purposes of the Structure Plan and Strathdale Commercial Precinct was divided into a number of component
areas. The key concepts developed by the Structure Plan for each of these precincts are as follows:
Village Core
• creation of a village core area encompassing a town square linking the Strath Village shopping centre and
the proposed Kennington Village shopping centre;
• a framework for a street-based urban form that will commenced with office tenancies and a restaurant to
front Marnie Road and Condon Street and a potential restaurant development proposed to be located at the
Condon Street / Edwards Road intersection;
• creation of a slow speed zone along Condon Street in the vicinity of the Strathdale Commercial Precinct
and to extend from Reservoir Road to Leigh Street;
• a direct Marnie Road / Crook Street road link and the rationalisation of traffic signalisation between Reservoir
Road and Edwards Road with new traffic signals at Marnie Road - Crook Street and removal of existing
signals at their current mid-block location.
Boulevard
• boulevarding of Condon Street through thematic edge and central plantation landscaping and the distinctive
clustering of signature trees at Edwards Road / Condon Street. The City of Greater Bendigo will continue
to work with VicRoads to identify appropriate measures to increase pedestrian safety in Condon Street.
Strath-Haven
• improved pedestrian access along the edges of Condon Street and across Condon Street connecting the
6 Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd
proposed open space at Kennington Village to Strath-Haven;
• potential for a pedestrian access route across the south-east corner of the Strath-Haven site connected
to a crosswalk at Crook Street. The route would form a new pedestrian axis connecting the village
core are to Kennington Reservoir and the open space areas and residential areas beyond;
• potential for a shared open space that could be developed at the south-eastern corner of the Strath-
Haven site and accommodate activities such as a coffee shop, community resource centre/library and
a plant nursery/garden;
• guidelines for the potential redevelopment of Strath-Haven that recognises its ongoing significant
retirement living and residential aged care accommodation role and the potential to create an attractive
interface with community activities and space.
Lakeside
• concept for improved pedestrian access around the southern section of Kennington Reservoir.
Strath Hill
• concept for improved pedestrian space at the Strath Hill centre.
Lowndes
• policy recommendation to investigate planning issues and the feasibility for development of a medium
density residential precinct north of Lowndes Street.
Central Victorian Innovation Park
• policy recommendation for a residential edge along Edwards Road to front the envisaged Central
Victorian Innovation Park.
Village Life
• policy recommendation to maintain the amenity and scale of development at the Village Life precinct.
Implementation Framework (Summary)
An implementation framework has been prepared to guide the planning and statutory management of key
projects required for the Structure Plan. Major themes in each precinct for each precinct are as follows:
Village Core
• development of concepts and masterplan for a village square between Strath Village and
Kennington Village;
• development of masterplan for Strath Village.
Boulevard
• development plan for Condon Street.
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 7
Strath-Haven
• development of masterplan for Strath-Haven.
Lakeside
• development of a management plan for Kennington Reservoir.
Strath Hill
• development of principles for Strath Hill shopping strip.
Lowndes
• development of principles for long term land use and development.
Central Victorian Innovation Park
• development of principles for land use and development.
8 Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd
1 Introduction
10 Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd
1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Study Area
1
Introduction
The Strathdale Commercial Precinct is a designated village centre serving the eastern and south-eastern suburbs
of Greater Bendigo. It is focussed on Condon Street at the intersection of Edwards Road and comprises:
• Strath Village shopping centre, a freestanding supermarket based neighbourhood centre;
• Strath Hill centre, a retail and business services freestanding development;
• Aldi supermarket located adjacent to the Strath Hill centre;
• the approved Kennington Village shopping centre to be located at the site currently occupied by the
Victory Christian School. The Kennington Village shopping centre will be physically linked to the
Strath Village shopping centre and will have restaurants and other activities facing Marnie Road and
Condon Street;
• two significant aged care facilities, Strath-Haven located adjacent to the Edwards Road/Condon Street
intersection and Village Life located approximately 200 metres west of the intersection;
• the John Bomford Medical Health Centre, administered by Bendigo Health located at the site of the
former Shire of Strathfieldsaye offices at the intersection of Crook Street and Condon Street;
• Reservoir Hotel, a local pub and bistro located at Condon Street opposite Reservoir Road,
approximately 450 metres east of the Condon Street/Edwards Road intersection;
• a site reserved for a proposed technology park to be developed by Latrobe University. The site is
located to the south of the Strath Village shopping centre;
• a bulky goods store located at Edwards Road and Lowndes Street, approximately 200 metres of the
Condon Street/Edward Street intersection;
• extensive park areas to the north and south of the Strathdale Commercial Precinct (Brennan Park in
the south west and parklands adjoining the Kennington Reservoir in the north east).
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 11The Strathdale Commercial Precinct study area was extended beyond a core area within approximately 400 metres
of the Condon Street/Edwards Road intersection (refer Figure 1.1) to include Kennington Primary School, some
800 - 900 metres north of the Condon Street/Edwards Road intersection.
FIGURE 1.1: Study Area
STRATHDALE COMMERCIAL PRECINCT
STUDY AREA
KENNINGTON
PRIMARY SCHOOL
E
U
EN
AV
N
O
H
E
IV
A
M
R
D
P
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IV
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ST
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S TR
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AL
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CO
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ND
T
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BARGAINS
N GALORE
ST
RE
ET ALDI
KENNINGTON
RESERVOIR
VILLAGE LIFE
STRATH HILL
EU
EN
STRATH-HAVEN
AV
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IG
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STRATH VILLAGE
PROPOSED
KENNINGTON VILLAGE H
A
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BRENNAN PARK
RE
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ST
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DRIVE
BOLTON
M AR N
IE RO
AD
12 Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd2 Context
14 Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd
2 CONTEXT
2
2.1 Policy
Context
The City of Greater Bendigo Commercial Land Strategy (Ratio Consultants 2004) provided a framework for
the planning and management of activity centres and precincts in the municipality for the planning period
2004 - 2021. “Council supports the strategy, which identifies that the existing retail and commercial
hierarchy in Bendigo is to be protected by encouraging growth that supports the respective
roles of each centre. Council seeks to maintain and strengthen this hierarchy and promote new
development that is consistent with structure plans and development plans” (refer Greater Bendigo
Planning Scheme, Clause 21.07 - 1).
The Bendigo activity centre hierarchy is comprised (in descending order) as follows:
• Bendigo Central Business District (CBD) which includes Bendigo Marketplace. This is the highest
order retail and commercial centre for Bendigo and its regional catchment area and is the primary
focus for:
- core retailing goods and services;
- commercial business and professional services;
- the arts, entertainment and recreation;
- legal services, social welfare and justice;
- health services;
- education services;
- tourism and hospitality services;
- city and regional public transport.
In addition the CBD also provides residential living opportunities for a local population, together with special
accommodation facilities. The CBD is the most significant employment precinct in north western and central
Victoria.
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 15• Kangaroo Flat south regional centre is based on the Centro Lansell shopping centre and extends north to
encompass the Bunnings Store, Rocklea bulky goods development and south to encompass the Kangaroo Flat
market and the Harvey Norman store. The centre has a sub regional role and draws extensive trade from areas
to the south and south west of Greater Bendigo.
• Village centres are supermarket based neighbourhood centres. These centres are intended to provide weekly
and daily shopping needs and services for local precincts and districts. They are also intended to provide for a
range of local professional, medical and community services; and to serve as the essential retail, commercial and
community focii of Bendigo’s district communities. The village centres include:
- Golden Square precinct;
- Eaglehawk;
- Kangaroo Flat village centre;
- Strathdale Commercial Precinct;
- Strathfieldsaye;
- Epsom village;
- Maiden Gully and Marong are proposed future village centres.
Each of the village centres has different catchments and supporting populations and these tend to be in the range
of 15,000 - 30,000 people. The Strathdale Commercial Precinct has a primary and secondary catchment area that
encompasses the south-east suburbs of Bendigo with a current estimated resident population of approximately
27,560 people (2009) and a projected estimated resident population of approximately 32,000 people by 2021.
16 Renaissance Planning Pty LtdFIGURE 2.1: Strathdale Commercial Precinct Catchment
Strathdale
3.1%
Primary Catchmen
Kennington
t
3.7%
Kennington
16%
62%
400m
Strathdale
30%
Flora Hill
4%
91.4%
Kennington
Flora Hill
12%
3.4%
Strathfieldsaye North
7.2%
Strathfieldsaye South
12%
0 1 2
Kilometres
Source: RACV VicRoads Country Street Directory of Victoria
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 17The specific floorspace needs of the Strathdale Commercial Precinct are set out in Section 2.4 (page 30). Most
of the projected retail and commercial floorspace needs for the next decade and beyond are being met by the
Aldi development and the approved Kennington Village development.
The Strathdale Commercial Precinct follows the typical locational pattern for village centres (refer Section 2.2,
page 20). However, in distinction to most of the other centres in Greater Bendigo the Precinct is neither based
on nor incorporates a shopping street; it is essentially an amalgam of freestanding shopping and business
centres and freestanding retired living developments, loosely related to the Condon Street - Edwards Road
intersection.
• Local and convenience centres provide the lowest order of Greater Bendigo’s activity centre hierarchy. These
are non supermarket based activity centres to provide for day to day requirements for local precincts with
populations up to about 4,000 people.
FIGURE 2.2: Bendigo Village Centres: Developed Floorspace
18 Renaissance Planning Pty LtdContext
FIGURE 2.3 Bendigo Village Centres: Developed and Approved Floorspace
In summary the village centres are a critical tier in Greater Bendigo’s activity
centre hierarchy. They are supermarket based centres and intended to serve
the city’s residential and ex-urban districts, and to provide a diversity of retailing,
commercial, professional, leisure and community services together with
opportunities for new forms of residential accommodation. There are significant
floorspace needs for village centres for the period 2009-2021 as indicated by a
recent study. As such they are intended to be developed as the social focii for
the city’s suburban areas.
The Strathdale Commercial Precinct is an active and successful village centre.
It serves a district population of approximately 27,500 people (2009) that is
projected to grow to 32,000 people by 2021. Most of the precinct’s projected retail
and office floorspace requirements for the next decade and beyond are being
met by the Aldi development and the approved Kennington Village development.
These developments will result in the Strathdale Commercial Precinct overtaking
the Kangaroo Flat Village Centre in terms of overall retail commercial floorspace
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 192.2 Location and Role
The Strathdale Commercial Precinct is located at Condon Street, an arterial road and principal access route from
central Bendigo to Strathfieldsaye, and Edwards Road, an important connector road linking a number of Bendigo’s
middle eastern suburbs. The precinct has evolved as a set of freestanding elements set back from both main roads
(refer Section 2.3, page 25).
.
The retail and service role of the Strathdale Commercial Precinct is established by its major attractors. At present
Strath Village is the principal shopping centre in the precinct. It functions as a large neighbourhood centre and its
retail catchment is set by the full line IGA supermarket which is the principal retail attractor. The retail catchments of
the Strathdale Commercial Precinct are shown in Figure 2.1 (page 17), based on in-centre surveys undertaken at the
precinct in April 2008. The catchments may be described as follows:
• a primary catchment area which is contained within approximately two kilometres of the Condon Street/
Edwards Road interesection. The primary catchment is the area from which most of the daily trips to the
centre are generated. It encompasses the suburbs of Kennington, Strathdale and Flora Hill and has an
estimated resident population of approximately 16,200 people;
• the secondary catchment area is the catchment from which the majority of weekly and less frequent
shopping trips are generated to the precinct. It extends approximately five - six kilometres north and
south of the precinct and about nine kilometres south east to Strathfieldsaye and beyond. The secondary
catchment encompasses the south eastern suburbs of Bendigo with an estimated resident population of
approximately 27,500 people (2009) projected to grow to approximately 32,000 people by 2021;
• within the primary catchment a walking catchment was assessed from the in-centre survey. It was found
to extend approximately one to one and a half kilometres from the Strathdale Commercial Precinct (refer
Figure 2.1, page 17). The walking catchment encompasses the study area selected for the Precinct
Structure Plan. The findings of an extensive active walkable catchment to the Strathdale Commercial
Precinct provided the impetus to ensure safe pedestrian access across the precinct and the main roads and
to the residential precincts in order to maximise effective pedestrian access for the residential community,
20 Renaissance Planning Pty LtdIn-centre surveys were carried out at Kangaroo Flat South Regional Centre, Kangaroo Flat Village Centre, the
Context
Bendigo CBD and Eaglehawk by Ratio Consultants in 2003. Further in-centre surveys were carried out by
Renaissance Planning in the Strathdale Commercial Precinct in April 2009. These surveys provided important
information on patterns of visitation and use of the precinct, together with an indication of needs and preferences.
The modal distribution of trips to the precinct indicates that trips are overwhelmingly car based with more than
82 per cent journeying to the precinct by car either as drivers or passengers. A further 14 per cent walked, and
the balance (approximately 4 per cent) journeyed to the centre by bus or taxi (approximately 2.5 per cent) or
cycled or came by motor cycle (approximately 1.5 per cent). As can be seen in Figure 2.4 below, the Strathdale
Commercial Precinct is a heavily car based centre, not just in terms of overall percentage of trips taken to the
centre, but also when compared to other village centres in Bendigo, including Kangaroo Flat and Eaglehawk.
FIGURE 2.4 Bendigo Activity Centres: Proportion of all trips by car (2003-2009)
Source: In Centre Surveys, Ratio Consultants, 2003, Renaissance Planning, 2009
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 21The surveys also indicated that notwithstanding the separate pattern of developments there was a significant interflow
of visitors between different parts of the precinct. It was found that:
• approximately 66 per cent of visitors to Strath Village also visited Strath Hill on the day of the survey; the
principal attraction being the Bendigo Bank at Strath Hill;
• approximately 40 per cent of visitors to Strath Village also visited other areas in the precinct including the
bulky goods store at Lowndes Street, the John Bomford medical centre and the Reservoir Hotel;
• approximately 42 per cent of visitors to Strath Hill also visited Strath Village on the day of survey, the
principal attractions being the IGA supermarket, the banks, newsagency and pharmacy.
Strath Village functions as a neighbourhood shopping centre with most visitors frequenting several stores and services
on a single trip. More than 90 per cent of patrons visited at least two shops or services and more than 57 per cent
visited four or more establishments. The Strath Hill centre operates more as a convenience strip and approximately
80 per cent of patrons visited two establishments or less. The principal stores and services visited at Strath Village
included the IGA supermarket, the newsagency, post office, pharmacy, the banks and the McDonalds restaurant.
In summary the Strathdale Commercial Precinct is well placed to serve as a designated
village centre for Bendigo’s south-eastern suburbs. Its primary catchment area
encompasses the local suburbs of Kennington, Strathdale and Flora Hill and the
secondary catchment area extends to inner Bendigo in the west and Strathfieldsaye in
the east. The precinct functions as a large neighbourhood centre and this role will be
augmented with the Aldi store and the development of Kennington Village. There is
a significant interflow of visitors between Strath Village shopping centre and the Strath
Hill centre and to other parts of the precinct including the bulky goods store at Lowndes
Street and the John Bomford Medical Centre.
22 Renaissance Planning Pty LtdContext
PHOTO 2.1: Strath Hill Centre: View looking north west at the Condon Street/Edwards Road intersection
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 23FIGURE 2.5: Strathdale Catchment Area
Ascot 0 2 4
Epsom
Lod
kilometres
don
lle
Va
y
Hi
gh w
ay
White Hills
North Bendigo y
wa
igh
dH
Long Gully
lan
Mid
Cal
East Bendigo
der
H ig
ay West Bendigo
hw
Bendigo
Kennington McIv
Golden Square Co or Hig
ndo hway
wa
y
n
igh Stre
et
Strathdale
H
Flora Hill
ld er
Junortoun
Ca
Quarry Hill
Spring Gully
Golden Gully Mandurang
Kangaroo Flat Strathfieldsaye
Bendigo Re
desd ale Road
Bendigo Maryborough Road
Primary catchment Primary walking catchment Origins of visitors who walked to centre
Secondary catchment Origins of visitors who journeyed to centre by motor vehicle or public transport
24 Renaissance Planning Pty LtdContext
2.3 Demography
As indicated in Section 2.1 (page 15) the main trade area (MTA) of the Strathdale Commercial Precinct (refer
Figure 2.5) is the principal catchment area for the activity centre and accounts for in excess of 90 per cent of
trade drawn to the centre. A detailed demographic analysis was undertaken of the suburbs that make up the core
of this area. These are:
• Flora Hill;
• Kennington;
• Strathdale;
• Strathfieldsaye.
A summary of the key measures used in the demographic assessment is shown in Figure 2.6 below. This shows
an assessment of selected demographic measures in each of the suburbs that comprise the core of Strathdale’s
MTA. The assessment is based on location quotient analysis. This measures the relative concentration of
a social or economic factor for a local area in comparison to a wider regional base. For example:
• in the 2006 Census of Housing and Population it was found that some 18.9 per cent of the population in the
suburb of Flora Hill was aged 20-24 years;
• by comparison the Census indicated that 6.9 per cent of the population in the City of Greater Bendigo was
aged 20-24 years;
• the location quotient (LQ) measure for persons aged 20-24 years in Flora Hill at the 2006 Census is as
follows:
LQ (Flora Hill) = % of persons aged 20-24 years in Flora Hill
% of persons aged 20-24 years in Greater Bendigo
= 18.90
6.90
= 2.74
The analysis shows that the proportion of persons aged 20-24 in Flora Hill was almost three times the average
representation of this age group in Greater Bendigo. Thus, at the 2006 Census the location quotient analysis
shows Flora Hill to have a high concentration of persons in this age group relative to Greater Bendigo.
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 25The location quotient measure is a simple and powerful measure of relative concentration and very informative in terms of
developing and understanding of the key demographic, social and economic characteristics of a local area in comparison
to a wider regional base. It will be appreciated that where the LQ value equals 1.0 then there is no variation between a
local area and the wider region. As the key to Figure 2.6 (page 27) indicates LQ values in the range of 0.95 to 1.05 there
is no statistically significant variation from the mean. The various indicators of degrees of over or under representation and
associated LQ values are shown in the key to Figure 2.6.
Figure 2.7 (page 28) shows how each of the selected demographic measures was represented in each of the areas under
study at the 2006 Census of Housing and Population. For example, it can be seen that the reference area as a whole has
marginally or significantly higher family and household incomes compared to the City of Greater Bendigo as a whole (11 per
cent higher median family incomes and 18 per cent higher median household incomes, with higher variations in Strathdale
and Strathfieldsaye).
The analysis shows patterns that reflect an inner-outer dichotomy across Greater Bendigo. For example, average household
size and the relatively high concentration of family households are reflected in Strathfieldsaye, a growing outer urban area.
The inner areas of Flora Hill and Kennington were marginally under-represented in these measures. Similarly the proportion
of persons aged under 14 years is significantly over-represented in Strathfieldsaye, and under-represented in the inner
suburbs of Flora Hill and Kennington with no significant variation in the suburb of Strathdale.
Strathdale and Kennington have relatively high concentrations of older people and Strathfieldsaye has a significant under-
representation of older citizens. The pattern of lone persons households also reflects an inner-outer variation across
the reference area, with relatively high concentrations of lone person households in the inner suburbs of Flora Hill and
Kennington. There is a marginal under-representation of lone person households in Strathdale and a significant under-
representation in the suburb of Strathfieldsaye.
Finally a measure was selected that reflected the attendance at tertiary institutions among persons aged 15-24 years. It
was found that the inner suburbs of Flora Hill and Kennington have relatively high concentrations of tertiary students. The
proportion of students at Strathdale shows no significant variation from the City of Greater Bendigo and there is a significant
under-representation of tertiary students at Strathfieldsaye.
26 Renaissance Planning Pty LtdAn analysis of the Strathdale local area from the 2006 Census of Population and Housing is highlighted in the figures
Context
below. Figure 2.6 highlights age structure data from the 2006 ABS Census for those areas that make up the Main Trade
Reference Area compared to Greater Bendigo as a whole. A score of over 1.05 highlights an over representation of
particular age structure data whilst a score of less than 0.95 highlights an under representation.
FIGURE 2.6: Strathdale Main Trade Area and Greater Bendigo Age Structures
Location Quotient Values: Greater Bendigo as Base
Area Age Structure - All Persons
0 to 4 5 to 14 15 to 19 20 to 24 25 to 34 35 to 44 45 to 54 55 to 64 65+
Flora Hill 0.81 0.69 1.63 2.73 1.22 0.72 0.66 0.65 0.92
Kennington 0.66 0.84 1.02 1.33 0.91 0.89 0.93 0.85 1.48
Strathdale 0.87 1.00 0.99 0.93 0.77 0.92 1.09 1.20 1.12
Strathfieldsaye 1.53 1.46 0.94 0.59 1.25 1.24 0.95 0.75 0.38
Total Main Trade
0.91 0.96 1.13 1.37 0.99 0.92 0.93 0.90 1.06
Reference Area
>1.30 Highly over represented
1.16 - 1.30 Significantly over represented
1.06 - 1.15 Marginally over represented
0.95 - 1.05 No significant variance
0.94 - 0.85 Marginally under represented
0.84 - 0.70 Significantly under representedin the 20 to 24 age group) and the elderly (those living in aged care facilities, the over 65 age group). It doesn’t appear
to be a popular location for family’s with those in the 0 to 14 and 25 to 64 age groups either marginally or significantly
under represented.
• Flora Hill is dominated by the La Trobe University campus and this is reflected in the age group structures for the
suburb. There is a huge over representation of those in the 15 to 24 age group and significant under representations
in the young (5 to 14) and middle aged (35 – 54).
• Strathfieldsaye represents a quintessential young family suburb. There is significant over representation of those in
the 25 to 44 age groups and of those in the 0 to 14 age groups (most likely the children of those significantly over
represented middle aged people). There is a significant under representation of adolescents and young adults who
are finishing or have finished secondary schooling and of older people, particularly the elderly (over 65 years of age).
Figure 2.7 highlights location quotient ratios of household and income data from the 2006 Census for the Strathdale area
compared to Greater Bendigo as a whole. A score of greater than 1.05 represents an over representation of particular household
and income data in Strathdale compared to Greater Bendigo.
FIGURE 2.7: Relative Concentrations of Key Demographic Measures
Location Quotient Values: Greater Bendigo as Base
Median Median Median Tertiary
Area Median family % of Lone % Persons % Persons
Average household housing loan Median rent individual % of Family Institution
income Person Under 14 Over 64
household size income repayment ($/weekly) income Households Attending
($/weekly) Households Years Years
($/weekly) ($/monthly) ($/weekly) Aged 15 to 24
Flora Hill 0.92 0.98 0.93 1.00 1.09 0.70 0.94 1.18 0.76 0.97 2.87
Kennington 0.92 1.08 1.02 1.04 1.09 1.08 0.90 1.28 0.81 1.53 1.40
Strathdale 1.00 1.12 1.22 1.09 1.13 1.11 1.04 0.89 0.96 1.12 1.05
Strathfieldsaye 1.28 1.28 1.54 1.29 1.44 0.84 1.23 0.34 1.40 0.16 0.77
Total Main Trade
1.03 1.11 1.18 1.10 1.19 1.10 1.00 1.01 0.96 1.04 1.79
Reference Area
>1.30 Highly over represented
1.16 - 1.30 Significantly over represented
1.06 - 1.15 Marginally over represented
0.95 - 1.05 No significant variance
0.94 - 0.85 Marginally under represented
0.84 - 0.70 Significantly under representedAs Figure 2.7 highlights:
Context
• income levels observed in the Census were consistently higher in the Strathdale area compared to
Greater Bendigo and for household incomes the differential was significant. Household median weekly
incomes were 22 per cent higher in Strathdale compared to Greater Bendigo;
• there was a higher preponderance of family households in the Strathdale area compared to Greater
Bendigo and lower representation of both lone person households and group households.;
• demographic projections indicate that the population will age over the next decade and beyond with
significant increases in the population aged 65 years and over. The proportion of single person
households is projected to marginally increase over the period to 2021.
In summary the demographic assessment shows variations across the reference area for a number of
measures that appear to reflect a wider inner-outer variation in the wider urban area. Notwithstanding
this pattern the area as a whole is generally of a higher income level than represented in the wider City of
Greater Bendigo. The MTA of the Strathdale Commercial Precinct thus encompasses a broad diversity of
demographic areas and the provisioning of services and activities at the activity centre will need to address
the broad demographic mix in the wider catchment in order to maximise its appeal in the wider region.
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 292.4 Social, Community and Retailing Needs
The recent social assessment commissioned by the City (undertaken by Dr Kate Kerkin) identified the social needs of the
local communities surrounding the future Kennington Village development. The study found that there were a range of needs
in the local area. These encompassed:
• Early childhood years – the study identified potential to utilise a number of buildings within the catchment for
community groups including play groups and parents’ groups.
• Education and training – possible need for an additional primary school beyond 2021. No need for a further
secondary school.
• Young people – no non-recreational facilities targeting young people in the precinct. Opportunities to enhance
youth services for young people by improving walking and cycle links and increasing public transport options to
link suburban areas with the CBD, community services and entertainment options.
• Family – demand for increased family support services by 2011.
• Older years – demand is very strong in the catchment for aged services. Projected long-term growth is forecast
in the coming years. The current approach is to provide an holistic approach to planning for ageing within the
community and provide a positive approach to ageing. This approach is reflected in the City’s Health and Well
Being Strategy.
• Child disability and family support service operate from the Strathdale Children’s Centre. There are no identified
adult disability support services in the local district.
• General community – particular community services or facilities that would be desirable at the Kennington Village
retail development would include a generic meeting space for people of all ages, consulting rooms for visiting
medical practitioners or community health services providing immunisation services, diabetes testing and other
services and information, access opportunities for library and outreach services where possible and appropriate.
30 Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd• Medical – there is one general clinic in the Strathdale Commercial Precinct. The Strathdale Children’s
Context
Centre provides sessional children’s specialities. There is also a chiropractic centre. However further
specialist medical services would be beneficial.
The major needs and gaps in the area surrounding the Strathdale Commercial Precinct are considered to be youth and
family services. There is a lack of non-sporting youth facilities and a general youth resource centre. Moreover, there
is a lack of youth support services, youth non-sporting activities and adult disability services.
The in-centre survey at the Strathdale Commercial Precinct provided information on needs of visitors to the Precinct.
Survey respondents indicated the need for an additional supermarket, fresh food stores, clothing specialty stores and
a discount department store. Positive perceptions of the Centre were based on its location and convenience and
parking accessibility. Negative perceptions related to the appearance and amenity of the Strath Village shopping
centre and the view that the principal shopping centre (Strath Village) appeared “old and tired”.
The retail and commercial floorspace requirements for the Strathdale Commercial Precinct were assessed in the
recent studies: the Kennington Village Strategic and Economic Assessment study (prepared for the City of Greater
Bendigo, Collie Pty Ltd, August 2008 and the Commercial Land Strategy Review (for the City of Greater Bendigo,
Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd, November 2009.
These studies have indicated that:
• there is a significant demand for retail and commercial floorspace at the Strathdale Commercial Precinct;
• the recently completed Aldi supermarket and the approved Kennington Village Shopping Centre development
will provide two additional supermarkets to the Precinct, a number of specialty stores, cafes and offices.
The two developments will add 8,340 square metres gross leasable area (GLA) of retail goods and services
floorspaces and 700 square metres GLA of office floorspace.
Analysis undertaken for the study indicates that there is a further potential for some 2,000 square meters of retail
goods and services at the Strathdale Commercial Precinct by 2026 (principally in cafes, hospitality services and retail
services) and a further 700 square metres GLA of office floorspace. In addition there are other requirements for
community meeting facilities and specialist medical consulting rooms.
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 31In summary the work by Coomes Consulting and surveys undertaken by Collie Pty
Ltd in April 2009 identified social, amenity and shopping needs for the Precinct. The
social needs reflected the requirements of life cycle groups in the local area. The
identified range of medical and community facility and service requirements provide
opportunities to further consolidate Strathdale Commercial Precinct. The current
development of the Aldi store and the approved Kennington Village development will
largely meet identified facility and service requirements for the foreseeable future.
Research for the Structure Plan has found that there are some additional floorspace
requirements that will need to be provided to meet projected demands up to 2026.
This encompasses additional requirements for retail and hospitality services, office
floorspace and medical services. In addition there are other requirements for
community meeting facilities that should be provided. Current planning to upgrade
the Strath Village shopping centre will address some perceptions of the need to
improve the amenity and public realm of the centre.
PHOTO 2.2: Strath Village Shopping Centre - View of Main Entry Area
32 Renaissance Planning Pty LtdContext
2.5 Setting and Physical Structure
The Strathdale Commercial Precinct has evolved as a crossroads neighbourhood centre and focal area in a
suburban environment. Condon Street is the principal access route from central Bendigo to Strathfieldsaye and
Edwards Road is an important connector road providing cross suburban access to Flora Hill and Kennington.
Thus the crossroads on which the Strathdale Commercial Precinct has developed provide extensive district and
suburban access for the centre.
The Strathdale Commercial Precinct is a product of the suburbanisation of Bendigo and the growth of the
south eastern suburbs from the 1960s onwards. The principal activities of the Precinct are accommodated in
freestanding structures, essentially surrounded by car parking (refer Figure 2.8, page 39):
• The Strathdale Commercial Precinct and indeed the wider local area is dominated by the road
network. It provides the scale and setting for the Strathdale Commercial Precinct and is the principal
common element in the suburban environment.
• The development of Strath Village, Strath-Haven and Strath Hill (and the bulky goods store north
of Lowndes Street) present the Precinct as a series of large scale freestanding buildings widely
separated from the road network and each other, by large car parking areas and uncoordinated open
space.
• Strath Village shopping centre is almost entirely an internalised shopping centre with a limited
number of tenancies having an external face, and the main building block is well separated from
either Edwards Road or Condon Street.
• Similarly Strath-Haven presents as a freestanding building mass with no connection to any street
frontage.
• The Strath Hill centre is a freestanding strip running parallel to Edwards Road and separate from it.
• The Aldi supermarket, on the site of the former indoor sports centre also presents as a freestanding
supermarket located at the rear of the Strath Hill centre.
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 33• The approved Kennington Village shopping centre development is planned to be developed as a
“freestanding wing” to be linked to the Strath Village shopping centre. Office and restaurant tenancies
will address the street face at Marnie Road and parts of Condon Street.
• There are extensive open space areas throughout the Study Area. The predominant public space
is formed around Kennington Reservoir between Crook Street and Reservoir Road and provides an
important green corridor. Brennan Park in the south west of the study area is an important recreational
and open space resource.
• The suburban environment is comprised of standard density detached dwellings and the dissection of
the area by the arterial road and connector roads has resulted in an environment that is beyond the
pedestrian scale and is dominated by the motor vehicle.
• The land form is undulating with high points at the north and south of the Study Area.
In summary the Precinct has evolved as a series of freestanding building masses separated from the
road network and each other by extensive car parking and uncoordinated landscaping. Moreover
there are no pedestrian focal places and spaces in the Precinct, and gathering spaces for shoppers
and visitors are confined to internal arcades of the Strath Village shopping centre, the edge spaces
of the Strath Hill centre or areas within the McDonalds restaurant.
Two of the key issues facing the Structure Plan arise directly from the current isolated forms and
lack of quality pedestrian space and amenity in the Strathdale Commercial Precinct. The Structure
Plan is (inter alia) directed to achieve a village heart for the local community defined by a network of
attractive pedestrian focusssed spaces. It is also focussed to provide a framework for the long term
transformation of the Precinct to an urban street based form.
The Strathdale Commercial Precinct is set within a standard density suburban environment
predominantly comprised of detached single level dwellings. The in-centre surveys showed that
about 14 per cent of shoppers and other visitors walk to the Precinct and distances of one kilometre
and more are not uncommon. The public realm of the suburban environment is dominated by the
road network, which present wide expanses of asphalt and verges well beyond the pedestrian scale.
34 Renaissance Planning Pty LtdPHOTO 2.3:
View east along Condon Street
Context
at the Edwards Road intersection
PHOTO 2.4:
View north along Crook Street
PHOTO 2.5:
View across Crook Street to Strath Haven
aged care facilities
PHOTO 2.6:
View across Crook Street
south west to Condon Street
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 352.6 Integrated Access Considerations
Considerations of integrated access provided an important part of the understanding of the Precinct’s context
and planning issues.
Pedestrian and Cycle Access
Research undertaken for the study indicates there are extensive pedestrian movements throughout the Study
Area. In particular, Kennington Primary School, South East College and Latrobe University are significant
generators of pedestrian trips. The Strathdale Commercial Precinct is itself a major generator of pedestrian
trips, and the three nodes, together with Kennington Reservoir and surrounding parkland and Brennan Park
provide an important network of pedestrian attractions and open space.
The most significant missing links in the pedestrian network are the limited safe pedestrian crossings at
Condon Street which traverses the heart of the Precinct. Thus the improvement of safe pedestrian access
accross Condon Street will have a significant systemic benefit across the entire study area.
Similarly there is extensive provision for both on-road and off-road cycle access throughout the Study Area.
The key missing links are on-road cycle links along Edwards Road south of Lowndes Street, Lowndes Street
south of Edwards Road, Crook Street and provision for safe access across Condon Street. These links will
significantly improve safe bicycle access across the wider local area.
Public Transport Access
Bus services traverse Condon Street to inner Bendigo and the CBD, with an important connecting loop via
Edwards Road to Latrobe University and the South East Secondary College. The current and projected
growth of Strathfieldsaye is likely to generate demands for more frequent services to this district via Condon
Street.
Vehicular Access
Sub-regional access to the Precinct is provided by the arterial road network (Condon Street and Reservoir
Road). District and inter-suburban access is provided by the connector road network (Edwards Road
supported by Lowndes Street, Crook Street and Marnie Road).
36 Renaissance Planning Pty LtdKey traffic management and vehicular access issues include:
Context
• the need to improve pedestrian safety and facilitate safe pedestrian access across Condon Street,
particularly in the vicinity of the Strathdale Commercial Precinct;
• the need to achieve traffic calming along Condon Street in the vicinity of the Strathdale Commercial
Precinct;
• the need to improve traffic access across the Study Area. At present there is no connection between
Marnie Road and Crook Street at Condon Street. Access to Marnie Road from Edwards Road or Crook
Street, north of Condon Street can only be achieved via the Condon Street Edwards Road intersection.
Thus the effect of this disconnection is to make local access difficult and circuitous;
• the need to facilitate co-ordinated access from Condon Street to the two roadside restaurants that will
exist once the Kennington Village development has been implemented (that is the existing McDonalds
Restaurant and a proposed restaurant to be developed to the east of the McDonalds facility);
• the need to co-ordinate vehicular access to Condon Street at Reservoir Road and Crook Street and
Marnie Road.
Road Network Capacity
The analysis by Traffix indicates that the most significant traffic flows are carried by Condon Street in the vicinity of
the Strathdale Commercial Precinct (in the range of 14,000 - 16,000 vehicles per day measured as two-day data
traffic volumes) and Edwards Road (approximately 7,500 vehicles per day north of Innovation Court and south of
Condon Street). The analysis found that there is sufficient capacity at this intersection to cater for projected traffic
flows and that there is existing capacity within the existing road network to cater for foreseeable traffic growth.
Car Parking
The car parking assessments by Traffix found that:
• the principal car park at Strath Hill (Area 7, refer Figure 5.1, page 64) is currently close to capacity and
accordingly any measures provided as part of a Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan should
not reduce the parking provision in that car park;
• the adjacent car park (Area 10, refer Figure 5.1, page 64) is poorly utilised and measures could be
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 37considered to increase the connectivity between this car park and Area 7 to share the parking demands
and available resources;
• parking area 5 (Strath Village, western car park facing Edwards Road) is highly utilised and congested
due to vehicles entering and exiting at both ends. Consideration may be given to making this area
operate one way, to reduce congestion and improve vehicle circulation;
• overall Strath Village car parking is underutilised (61 per cent at the peak time). The car parking supply
could be reduced from 508 car spaces to 344 car spaces and peak occupancy would be at 90 per cent.
Accordingly, the car parking assessment indicates that some existing car spaces can be removed in
order to implement other objectives of the Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan, such as
improvements to pedestrian amenity and potential for additional street-based developments; and that
this can occur without prejudice to the operation of the car parking system at Strath Village, subject to a
final assessment of car spaces that may be lost for these purposes.
In summary the Strathdale Commercial Precinct and surrounding educational, recreation
and park areas are significant generators of pedestrian activity. An on and off road bicycle
network also contributes to connectivity in the precinct, which is primarily accessed via the
arterial (Condon Street and Reservoir Road) and sub-arterial road network. These access
routes serve vehicles and the public transport network and connect the precinct with sub-
regional and district and inter-suburban communities.
Key access considerations for the network involve ensuring pedestrian safety, linking the
existing network, developing further public transport infrastructure and further co-ordination
and facilitation of key traffic issues for the benefit of pedestrians in the area. The analysis
found that there was sufficient capacity for future traffic growth and the precinct had a
significant component of carparking, some of which was underutilised.
38 Renaissance Planning Pty LtdContext
FIGURE 2.8: Location of Car Parks surveyed (Collie Pty Ltd and
Traffix Group), April 2009
1 Strath Village -
northern car park
2 Strath Village -
eastern car park/service area
3 McDonalds car park
4 Strath Village -
11
main northern car park
10
12 5 Strath Village -
9
main western car park
7 6 Edwards Road south
8
7 Strath Hill
8 Service Station
9 Strath Hill west -
mixed use precinct
4 10 Strath Hill north -
3 mixed use precinct
5 11 Feel Good Fitness car park
12 Bargains Galore car park
2
6
1
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 3940 Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd
3 Vision and Community Values
42 Renaissance Planning Pty Ltd
3 VISION AND
COMMUNITY VALUES 3
3.1 Community Values
Vision and Community Values
A community workshop was conducted with residents and stakeholders during the consultation phase of the project.
The development of a vision to guide the Strathdale Commercial Precinct was derived from an identification of key
themes that were deemed to be of significance to the community. These encompassed:
• Pedestrian Safety, Traffic Management and Access
“This key issue concerns the separation of people from the traffic and providing access for
all. Current access and safety for the elderly, mobility devices and prams was identified
as a problem. The speed and volume of traffic coupled with a lack of crossings on the
surrounding roads was seen as challenging for the elderly and children. The fragmentation of
shopping caused by the roadways and traffic was seen as a negative and suggestions were
made about a physical linkage across the highway through either an underpass or overpass.
Another suggestion was the creation of a central island, with tree plantings on the highway so
people could make a two stage crossing..”
• Community Spaces, Identity and Sustainable Design
“There was a desire to make the Strathdale Commercial Precinct user friendly and a place
for people to enjoy. Suggestions included: more shade and seating, playground space
for children, green open spaces, coffee shops and alfresco dining. The future plan for the
Strathdale Commercial Precinct was seen as an opportunity to integrate the shopping centres
and create a village identity and character. There was some discussion about the name of
the area in relation to identity building. Future development should incorporate sustainable
design elements like recycled water use and sustainable energy.”
Strathdale Commercial Precinct Structure Plan Report 43You can also read
