Oxford Street
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Oxford Street The Bulimba District, Brisbane, Australia Project Type: Mixed-Use/Multi-Use Case No: C033007 Year: 2003 SUMMARY A public/private partnership to transform a defunct shopping strip located in the Bulimba District of Brisbane, Australia, into a vibrant, mixed-use district. The catalyst for this transformation is a city-sponsored program to renovate and improve the street and sidewalks along the 0.6-mile (one-kilometer) retail strip of Oxford Street. FEATURES Public/private partnership City-sponsored improvements program Streetscape redevelopment Oxford Street The Bulimba District, Brisbane, Australia Project Type: Mixed-Use/Multi-Use Volume 33 Number 07 April–June 2003 Case Number: C033007 PROJECT TYPE A public/private partnership to transform a defunct shopping strip located in the Bulimba District of Brisbane, Australia, into a vibrant, mixed-use district. The catalyst for this transformation is a city-sponsored program to renovate and improve the street and sidewalks along the 0.6-mile (one-kilometer) retail strip of Oxford Street. SPECIAL FEATURES Public/private partnership City-sponsored improvements program Streetscape redevelopment PROGRAM MANAGER Brisbane City Council Brisbane Administration Center 69 Ann Street Brisbane 4000 Queensland Australia Postal Address GPO Box 1434 Brisbane 4001 Queensland Australia (07) 3403 8888 Fax: (07) 3403 9944 www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/ council_at_work/improving_city/ creating_living_villages/ suburban_centre/index.shtml GENERAL DESCRIPTION Over the past ten years, Oxford Street, located in the Bulimba District of Brisbane, Australia, has been transformed from a defunct shopping strip into a vibrant, mixed-use district. The catalyst for this turnaround is a public/private partnership between Brisbane’s city council and Oxford Street’s local business owners. In 1996, the city of Brisbane created the Suburban Centre Improvement Project (SCIP), providing a grant of AU$600,000 to renovate and improve the general ambience of the 0.6-mile (one-kilometer) retail strip of Oxford Street. The key components of the SCIP include curb buildouts, sidewalk widening and paving, tree plantings, lighting improvements, public artwork, and new street furniture. These improvements not only have increased pedestrian safety and reduced traffic impacts, but they also have helped to establish Oxford Street as a gathering place and the social hub of the suburb. As a result of the improvements made through SCIP, new retail businesses have expanded on or moved to Oxford Street, with eateries such as Café Circus, the Coffee Club, and Baskin-Robbins all opening within a year of the start of the SCIP process. The historic Balmoral Hotel was refurbished, while the Balmoral Cinema Complex expanded to six screens. THE SITE AND ITS HISTORY The Bulimba District, as defined by the Brisbane City Council’s Local Area Plan, primarily includes the areas of Bulimba, Balmoral, and Hawthorne, in addition to parts of Morningside and Norman Park. Geographically, the area is a peninsula bordered on three sides by the Brisbane River, and connected to the central business district via the CityCat river ferry service and the Wynum Road/Shafston Avenue arterial road network. The commercial heart of the Bulimba District is Oxford Street, which is located approximately 3.7 miles (six kilometers) from the Brisbane central business district via the Story Bridge. Considered the village center of the Bulimba District, Oxford Street runs east-west from the intersection of Riding, Hawthorne, and Lytton roads to the Brisbane River, a distance of approximately 0.6 mile (one kilometer). Property fronting the street is a mix of shops, cafés, offices, cinemas, liquor outlets, churches, residential units, light-industrial uses, and parkland. For the latter half of the 20th century, the area’s proximity to the local transit system, “the tram,” made Oxford Street a convenient and accessible place for both residents and shoppers. However, over time, as the number of automobile trips for shopping greatly increased and the tram's ridership declined, Oxford Street was passed over by shoppers en route to newer retail centers. Property values throughout the surrounding area declined and many retailers relocated or went out of business. This decline was not unique to Oxford Street—a number of other areas throughout Brisbane also experienced significant drops in main street retail patronage. The Brisbane City Council and Lord Mayor Jim Soorley initiated SCIP in order to revamp Brisbane’s suburban retail strips. The goal of the program is to create “living villages” that are pleasant places in which to work, socialize, shop, and relax. In addition to the Oxford Street redevelopment, other notable SCIP areas include Caxton Street, Paddington; Logan Road, Stones Corner; Brighton Road, Sandgate; Merthyr Road, New Farm; and Boundary Street, West End. So far, the city council has completed approximately 30 SCIPs throughout Brisbane. The SCIP process began when the city of Brisbane provided money for the transformation of Albert Street, in inner-city Brisbane, which included widening sidewalks lined with landscaping features and sidewalk dining areas. The success of the Albert Street project led to ideas on how to replicate this concept in the suburbs. The SCIPs were a natural progression from the Local Area Plans to renew suburban precincts that were already in place. The improvements program is innovative in that it provides capital to local business communities upfront, holding the community accountable for helping to create and implement a plan for the money’s use. Rather than tying up development plans for years in bureaucratic red tape, the SCIP process provides a specific amount of money for localities. This method has produced efficient and productive results throughout Brisbane’s suburbs. DEVELOPMENT PROCESS, FINANCING, AND OPERATIONS The Oxford Street renaissance began in 1996 when the Brisbane City Council awarded the aforementioned initial SCIP grant. Since that time, the city council has spent more than AU$600,000 upgrading Oxford Street. Upon receiving the SCIP designation, the Bulimba District revised its Local Area Plan and formed a 16-member Design Working Group for ongoing consultation among the city council, local merchants, and community groups (including the nearby Bulimba State School and the Bulimba Senior Citizens Center). A number of amendments to the original design of the Oxford Street SCIP came out of the community consultation process, including the continued improvements further west along Oxford Street to benefit more businesses, and changes to the design of curb buildouts in various locations. Key components of the Oxford Street project include the following: curb buildouts; sidewalk widening and paving; tree plantings; sidewalk seating; lighting improvements; coordinated street furniture (trash receptacles, lights, seating, etc.); public artwork; and uplighting for trees in Memorial Park. Oxford Street was one of the very first SCIPs approved by the city council. In order to ensure its financial success, the city council granted the project 100 percent of its funding and did not impose a tax on retail uses to recoup part of its expenses. However, with most subsequent projects, the city council expects to collect approximately one-half of its grant money over a ten-year period through taxing the retailers that benefit from the SCIP. The City of Brisbane Act grants the city council the ability to enforce this tax, known as a “benefited area levy.” In cases where a SCIP area will be taxed, property owners must first vote on whether or not they want to participate in the SCIP. The approval of an SCIP requires a majority of owners to agree to pay back half of the cost of the project over a ten-year period. A “majority” of owners simply means one more than half, and the city council makes it clear that if it does not hear from an owner within the time specified for a response, then the owner will be counted among those in support of the levy. The levy payments do not commence until the owner pays the levy. The payments start at the beginning of the financial year after the project has been completed. One of the first major successes for the Oxford Street SCIP was the redevelopment of the Balmoral Cinema Complex in 1998. The expansion of the cinema complex increased the number of screens from two to six, including one 51-foot (16-meter) screen and two 43-foot (13-meter) screens. The renovated complex offers current movies at discounted prices and provides 120 off-street parking spaces. Following the renovation of the cinema complex, a number of cafés and restaurants opened along Oxford Street. Before the SCIP was completed in 1997, and the cinema complex expanded in 1998, there was only one café on Oxford Street; now there are 17 cafés, restaurants, and fast-food outlets there. One of the first restaurants to occupy the newly redeveloped Oxford Street was Café Citrus, which brought with it a renowned chef who attracts patrons from all across Brisbane. Oxford Street’s various pedestrian-friendly streetscape improvements make the area conducive to the creation of a café culture where shoppers, residents, and store owners meet and chat. The uplighting of the fig trees in Memorial Park is beautiful as well as an added safety feature, allowing park users to remain in the area into the evening hours. Three Brisbane artists—Jamie McLean, Russell Anderson, and Gavin Fenelon—were commissioned to create public artwork pieces along Oxford Street. These various pieces include a community notice board and a series of handrails resembling mangrove roots. The art pays tribute to the area’s history, with an emphasis on Bulimba’s maritime past. An innovative public/private partnership, SCIP is successfully reversing the trend of suburban sprawl by renovating retail strips into mixed-use villages. These improvements have renewed interest in the area, with businesses undertaking renovations, new retailers opening stores, and property values in and around Oxford Street increasing by as much as 100 percent over a five-year period between 1996 and 2001.