Published on Wednesday, 11 September 2024 at 9:00:00 AM
The Town of Victoria Park is home to a collection of main streets that are ideal spots to locate a business. Etwell Street is a great example of this. Located between Riverview Road and Northampton Street, the Town has recently set about revitalising Etwell Street to create a vibrant local centre and community meeting place.
Improvements include construction of new brick paved footpaths, crossovers and al fresco areas, as well as the installation of new street furniture, decorative street lights, underground power, landscaping, realigned parking bays and a new bus stop, making getting to the area easier than ever and creating plenty more reasons for people to stay and connect.
Town of Victoria Park Mayor, Karen Vernon notes that the Town’s main streets play an important role in the vision for Victoria Park to be a dynamic place for everyone.
“Our Town Centres are an important part of this vision and we’re committed to creating spaces that not only promote sustainable, connected, safe and diverse places for our communities, but that are also prosperous and provide economic benefits and encourage more local businesses into the area,” Mayor Vernon said.
“Etwell Street is a great example of how a tired and run down area that housed only a few small businesses can be transformed into a great little community hub.
“The wonderful thing about the Etwell Street revitalisation is that the idea initially came from the community itself, as they wanted to be able to utilise the space more as a community hub and better support the local businesses in the area.
“Since the revitalisation, we have seen the centre embraced as a community space. Many locals have attended the range of pop-up events held by the Town of Victoria Park and are frequenting the area more regularly to support those local businesses located on Etwell Street.”
One local business that has seen the benefits of the revitalisation of Etwell Street’s Town Centre first hand is Bread Espresso Bar, who were able to access the Town’s Urban Forest Grants to contribute to the revitalisation and have added a stunning mural and a garden space to coincide with the new streetscape.
Sharon and Nick Declerck set up Bread Espresso Bar in Etwell Street as the revitalisation plans were only just underway.
“It was actually one of the reasons that we decided to locate our café in Victoria Park,” said Sharon.
“We already had a successful café in Como but really liked Vic Park and wanted to set up another café there. We were looking for somewhere off Albany Highway, as we wanted an area with more parking and greater accessibility and to have the ability to become part of a neighbourhood and connect with the local community.
“Etwell Street has ended up being a great choice for our business. People are loving the space and we’ve had great support from the community since we started here.”
Nick adds that the revitalisation of Etwell Street aligned with Bread Espresso Bar’s philosophy of creating a special place for the community. It has allowed for greater functionality and beautification of the area and enabled them to open and be available seven days a week for the community.
“For us, business is not just about serving ourselves, but serving the community. The revitalisation certainly helps to meet those needs, in terms of making the area more easily accessible, visibly more appealing, and it has helped to create a great community hub space for all,” he said.
“We’ve had great collaboration and support not only from the community, but also from the Town of Victoria Park and the other businesses around us. We’d love to see more businesses come into the area to further build on that sense of community and connection that we’re all trying to create.”
With a few shop spaces currently vacant in Etwell Street, there are still opportunities available for businesses to locate to the area and enable Etwell Street to reach its full potential as a community hub.
The Town of Victoria Park also has more pop-up performances and events scheduled for Etwell Street over the coming months to help promote the area and provide opportunities for the community to come together and connect. See our socials and website for more details.
Back to All News