CBD Revitalisation Project

Mildura Rural City Council is moving ahead with plans to revitalise and transform the region’s Central Business District.

The CBD Revitalisation Project is about to enter its next phase following community consultation on three proposed concepts for a revamped Feast Street, and 10 placemaking ideas for the Langtree Mall (see more about these initial concepts below).

More than 160 public submissions were received regarding these ideas and concepts, with the key themes identified including parking availability, support for more outdoor dining spaces, accessibility for the elderly and disabled, and ensuring the CBD becomes a greener space.

At the March Ordinary Council Meeting, Councillors endorsed the preferred concept designs which aim to transform Feast Street into an even more vibrant, attractive and entertaining precinct.

The concept is based around a shared street design, replacing existing outdoor dining structures with attractive vine-laden pergola-like shelters running the length of both sides of the popular eatery strip.

Other features include:

New tree-planting to provide more shade and amenity, creating a cooler, greener environment
Widened footpaths
Shared street with flush kerbs, providing improved pedestrian amenity and safety for pedestrians, as well as more flexibility for events
New landscaped gateways at Seventh and Eight Streets
Parallel car parking in Langtree Avenue and additional angle parking in Seventh Street
Footpath-level street crossings
Feature planters
Public art opportunities, including wayfinding and storytelling sculptures and light boxes
New lighting, including feature lighting.

Work will now progress to deliver a detailed shovel-ready design which will be used to attract the necessary funding to complete the project.

Background

Feedback was collected in late 2022 on a series of CBD-focused implementations attached to the Mildura CBD Plan 2020-2035. Developed by the experienced urban design and social planning consultancy Jensen PLUS, focused assessments around design and accessibility for the CBD have been conducted alongside an extensive period of stakeholder consultation.

Developed as a CBD Revitalisation Project, an emerging series of concept designs have been presented back to Mildura Rural City Council, which include a range of upgrade and development opportunities for prominent areas of the CBD. These are focused around key areas of consideration, including:

Access and connectivity enhancements for residents and visitors
Connecting the Mildura CBD to the Riverfront
Economic development and investment attraction
Improved amenity and wayfinding throughout the CBD
Revitalisation and regeneration of public realms

Contact us

For more information on the project please contact Economic Projects and Events Officer Mike Wall

Name	Mike Wall
Phone	03 5018 8100
Email	mike.wall@mildura.vic.gov.au

Document Library

Endorsed Feast Street Concept Plans
PDF (2.72 MB)

Image gallery

FAQs

As part of realising the vision attached to the Mildura CBD Plan 2020-2035, Council has packaged up a series of actions set out in the CBD plan to review the commercial supply, demand and configuration issues in order to deliver economic revitalisation to the Mildura CBD and broader municipality.

What are the key components of the revitalisation project?

Undertake an Economic Feasibility Study (Action 1E.1 of the Mildura CBD Plan)
Develop an Investment Prospectus for the CBD (Action 1E.2 of the Mildura CBD Plan)
Undertake a connectivity/permeability study with a focus on the mall and to the upper area of Langree Avenue (linkages to Action 1A.3 Langtree Avenue Placemaking Project, Action 3D.2 Integrational Connections Project)
Commence the Langtree Avenue Placemaking Project (Action 1A.3) leading to adoption of concept plans/designs to deliver this project
Commence the Feast Street Upgrade Project (Action 3C.3) leading to adoption of concept plans/designs to deliver this project

The Mildura CBD includes land from Seventh Street to Eleventh Street and from Walnut Avenue to San Mateo Avenue. The length of Deakin Avenue to Fifteenth Street is also included within the CBD boundary.

Council has requested a range of final concept designs for review and further assessments. These include plans for lower cost exercises which make considered improvements to existing assets and streetscapes, as well as higher cost options that propose significant upgrades and reconfigurations. Council will soon commence the process of acquiring cost estimates for proposed works and will make a decision based on projected outcomes and overall value for money.

The CBD Revitalisation Project has been successfully co-funded through grant funds awarded to the project through Regional Development Victoria’s Regional Infrastructure Fund, alongside a contribution by Mildura Rural City Council.

Funds to deliver any additional proposed works and upgrades will be subject to Council securing the necessary funding through future Capital Works funding applications. Other opportunities to develop the Mildura CBD may be advanced through government investment, private investor(s), or existing land-owner development.

At present, no timescale has been agreed. We do anticipate works to be delivered in stages.

A range of development scenarios are still being considered for the CBD. At this stage it is unknown as to what development opportunities will be prioritised, however Council will be assessing all viable options that utilise existing Council-owned land as a priority.

Strategic acquisition opportunities to advance CBD developments may be an option for Council to consider, but are likely to be opportunistic (for example, buildings or land being on the market for sale and purchase).

It is based on the concept that places are most successful when users have a wide range of reasons to be there. Through progressing a range of strategic placemaking interventions for Langtree Mall, opportunities to lift the look, feel, spirit and vibrancy of the street can be considered across a range of temporary, semi-permanent and permanent initiatives, delivering increased appeal for residents and visitors alike.

There is adequate supply of parking within the CBD, however it is important to consider how carparks work in with the streetscape and affect the overall safety and accessibility of the CBD. Where any parking reconfigurations have been considered in the designs put forward, additional parking in close proximity to Feast Street has been incorporated so as to offset any loss of parking on Feast Street.

A range of enhancement and revitalisation opportunities are being considered, based on land assessment and future economic growth potential for the CBD. This includes significant ‘anchor’ land development priorities, high-level assessments for improvements to East-West connectivity, new community facilities, laneway designs and activation concepts, dedicated parking structures, additional and/or improved public amenities, landscaping/greening initiatives, and public art planning.

The overall vision is to establish a responsive, resilient and people-oriented centre for community life that is multi-purpose and supported by sustainable economic growth.

Concepts C and B remove the central median and some kerbs, to make it easier for temporary street closures for special events in Feast Street. While busy in the evenings, we do not believe there would be enough patrons to sustain a larger dining and entertainment street all-day and every day. Feast Street also has a number of different businesses, not all of which are dining and entertainment focussed. For these reasons, design options maintain access and parking in Feast Street.

Making Feast Street one-way to traffic could create more space for parking, or dining, but would also displace traffic to other streets. One-way streets can sometimes increase traffic flows, as cars are forced to circulate back through other streets to face the desired direction of travel. Concepts B and C create more space for dining, green space and some parking options while maintaining two-way traffic.

The streetscape at Feast Street is quite dated and much of the physical infrastructure (like footpaths, street trees) needs renewal. We also want to invest to make the street and businesses more lively and more successful. Council is also investing in many projects and programmes outside the CBD as part of the Mildura Future Ready and wider Works & Projects initiatives.

Improving Feast Street is a major opportunity to further strengthen connections to the riverfront, for example by making the walking route along Langtree Avenue better quality, and by improving wayfinding and signage.

The CBD revitalisation project includes the analysis of opportunities for new car parking including on-street parking opportunities, and multi-storey car parks. Larger car parking options could cost a lot of money to build. We are also looking at how car parking could be included in mixed-use developments in the CBD (e.g. alongside new hotels, retail or office developments that may be needed in the coming years).

The 2020 master plan for the CBD does not propose allowing traffic and car parking in the Mall. Instead a placemaking strategy was proposed, working in partnership with businesses and other stakeholders to introduce new activities to draw people into the street (such as a children’s play space, more events spaces, and green areas), and through small scale infrastructure upgrades to the existing streetscape. The CBD Revitalisation project has proposed 10 opportunities to achieve this placemaking approach.

We are aware that there is some community interest in changing the Mall more significantly, including introducing cars and parking. Our team is also aware of the challenges of attracting and sustaining retail businesses in regional cities, and of the many difficulties and costs associated with Mall development and management around Australia and internationally.

The 2020 master plan, and the associated Langtree Avenue Revitalisation Discussion Paper 2019, suggest that making the Mall a more diverse, comfortable, safe and locally distinctive meeting place is just as important for the future of Langtree Mall as access and parking.

It is also important to note that the Mall is one of the few areas of dedicated civic space in the CBD, space that can be used as a meeting place, or for events or even smaller-scale recreation uses. At this time our team believes that other opportunities - including the redevelopment of Feast Street - are a higher priority, alongside more targeted placemaking projects in the Mall.

CBD Revitalisation Project

CBD Revitalisation Project

Sign up to hear more