City of Wbittlcsca

Mernda Town Centre

Comprehensive Development Plan City of Whittlesea

The Town Centre will be a source of pride for Mernda residents. They will be attracted to it, often on foot or by bike, to shop, wor1<, learn, be entertained - or simply to participate in community life. The Town will reflect the realities of the modern economy, but at the same time exhibit the valued characteristics of a traditional urban village - quality architecture with a human scale; a vibrant mix of land uses; and an overwhelming sense of place. The Memda Town Centre will inspire the community to realise the imperatives of environmental improvement, social progress and local economic growth.

This document and attached plan represents the Comprehensive Development Plan for the land shown on Whittlesea Planning Scheme Map No.13 as Comprehensive Development Zone (CDZ1). This is the designated Town Centre land in the Memda Strategy Plan. The affected land is generally surrounds the intersection of Bridge Inn Road and Plenty Road in Mernda

All Development Plans and Subdivision Plans relating to this land must be generally in accordance with this ComprehenSive Development Plan.

1. Introduction

The Mernda Town Centre will be a sub-regional activity centre that will service a primary catchment of around 50,000 people when the Mernda urban growth area is fully developed. This catchment size takes account of some population growth in the Whittlesea Township and the Rural North of the municipality. A catchment of this size is sufficient to support two supermar1<ets. a discount department store, and an extensive range of specialty shOps.

The Comprehensive Development Plan applies to an area of approximately 7 4.5 hectares. This indudes some areas of medium density housing that surround and support the core mixed-use area and the employment park. The core mixed­use area, which comprises four super-blocks on the south­east corner of Bridge Inn Road and Plenty Road, occupies an area of approximately 11.2 hectares (refer to Rgure 1). The employment park, towards the southern end of the Comprehensive Development Plan area, is approximately 7.7 hectares.

The emergence of a functional and attractive Town Centre in Mernda will further the social, economic and environmental objectives outlined in the Memda Strategy Plan. Town

MERNDA TOWN CENTRE COMPREHENSNE DEVELOPMENT PLAN

centres are a critical component of sustainable human settlements and can be generators of economic activity and community cohesion. It is expected that the Mernda Town Centre will have the following characteristics and attributes:

• Form the social and economic heart of a community.

• Remove the need to use a car for many local trips.

• Support public transport services.

• Generate local economic activity and employment

• Promote civic pride and community participation.

To achieve the type of Town Centre that is envisaged by the Memda Strategy Plan, five sets of Urban Design Principles have been devised to guide the ComprehenSive Development Plan. More detailed principles will be identified under the same five subject headings in subsequent Development Plar!,s) for the Mernda Town Centre. These will provide more specific directions on street design, lot layout, building form and architecture.

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2. Urban Design Principles

The following Urt>an Design Principles have been defined to provide a tramewol1< tor tile Memda Town Centre Comprehensive

Development Plan. The configuration and integration of land uses and tile design of the road network accords with these principles.

Urban Design Principles #1 -Land Use Integration and Density

• Maximise employment capacity and opportunities tormedium density housing around the mixed-use core.

• Integrate tile Town Centre site with the movement

economy.

• Provide small high quality public spaces or squares in thecore of the Town Centre with larger ones to the periphery.

• Concentrate most intensive mixed-use development inthe core of the Town Centre • close to public transport andarterial roads.

• Capture eronomic benefits that can flow from arterialroads by fronting them with appropriate retail andcommercial development within the confines of theComprehensive Development Plan area.

• Locate community rand uses on landmal1< sites wherethey are most accessible.

Urban Design Principles #2 -Access and Connectivity

• Create a logical and coherent network of connectedroutes to form a supporting skeleton for the Town Centre.

• Integrate public and private transport systems.

• Ensure that tile transport hub effectively serves theresidential precincts of Mernda.

• Design pedestrian and bicycle routes to providecontinuous linkS between Town Centre, the Plenty GorgeParklands, and all residential precincts.

• Align street linkages to provide safe and convenientaccess to public transport nodes.

• Provide for an active development frontage to all streets.

• Create strong road connections and synergies betweenthe Town Centre, the adjoining residential precincts, andthe Plenty Gorge Parklands.

• Surround public spaces with streets or building frontages.

• Design access to the Town Centre to spread traffic acrossthe road netwol1< rather than channel It all onto theprimary arterial roads.

MERNOA TOWN CENTRE COMPREHENSIVE DEVELOPMENT PLAN

Urban Design Principles #3 -Diversity and Adaptability

• Provide for an appropriate mix of retail, employmen�residential and community land uses.

• Provide an interconnected grid-based street system that

can support a range of rand uses as conditions changeover time.

• Design a robust urt>an form that can adapt to changingcommunity needs and economic conditions.

• Transitions between different rand uses, from retail toresidential for example, should occur mid-block to ensurestreetscape consistency.

• Locate new land uses so that they relate positively toexisting land uses.

Urban Design Principles #4 -Local Identity and Legibility

• Provide an urban form and movement network that iseasily understood and negotiated.

• Utilise Mernda's distinctive and natural and culturalheritage features, such as River Red Gums and heritagebuildings, to create a positive sense of place.

• Shape streets and pathS in response to randtorrn andnatural features.

• Provide a strong visual connection between public spacesand the developments that front them.

• Achieve a high degree of visual enclosure around smallerpublic spaces in tile retail core.

• Orientate medium density residential development so thatit engages with the Plenty Gorge Parklands.

Urban Design Principles #5 -

Ecological Responsiveness

• Protect sites of ecological sensitivity.

• Create green linkages between major areas of habitat.

• Showcase natural features within public space that isfronted by development.

• Orientation lots to maximise solar access to buildings.

3. Elements of the Town Centre

The Mernda Strategy Plan provides for a series of connected neighbourhoods that serve that the mixed-use Town Centre. The Town location is central to the growth area and capable of being integrated with the transportation system.

The above-mentioned Urban Design Principles have been applied in the Comprehensive Development Plan for the Mernda Town Centre. The plan creates a network of active streets that will provide the framework for the Town.

In order to create a vital social and economic environment, retail development should have a strong relationship with the street. To achieve this, the Comprehensive Development Plan provides for a 'perimeter block approach'. This design treatment sleeves the larger retail stores and their car pall<s with fine-grain building that present directly to the street The relationship between buildings, their uses, and the street will be a fundamental determinant of the Town's economic pertormance.

Mernda boasts a distinctive natural and cultura.1 heritage. The Town Centre will celebrate and build upon these values to forge a strong local identity. Key natural and cultural elements, induding the Bridge Inn Hotel, Mechanics Institute and cottage, the Mayfield Farm, and remnant River Red Gums are preserved. These features will help to distinguish Memda from other activity centres in the City of Whittlesea.

a) Streets and Roads

The road structure of the Mernda Town Centre provides for a wide range of retail, commercial, community and residential land uses. It will also serve to spread traffic loads more evenly across the road netwol1< of the Mernda growth area Some traffic from all precincts will be drawn into the Town Centreand away from the intersection of Plenty Road and Bridge Inn Road. By integrating the Town Centre with the public transport and open space systems, tt is hoped that private motor vehicles will not be used for many local trips.

The Town's Main Street will run parallel to Bridge Inn Road and to the east of Plenty Road. The rationale for orientating the Main Street in this direction is as follows:

• It will allow Plenty Road and Bridge Inn Road toefficiently carry traffic without flow intemiptions dueto friction from Town Centre activities.

• Projected traffic volumes on Plenty Road and BridgeInn Road are not conducive to a pedestrian-orientatedTown Centre environment These roads will be toohostile for fine-grain retailing and are more suited tobulky highway-sales developments.

• The location of the major transport hub alongside theexisting rail reservation supports the designated MainStreet. The transport hub will be a focal point that

MERNDA TOWN CENTRE COMPREHENSIVE DEVELOPMENT PLAN

anchOrs the eastern end of the street. A high amenity streetscape will encourage people to walk the length of Main Street to access the station.

• The Main Street allows the heritage places at thePlenty Road I Bridge Inn Road intersection to bepreserved and integrated within the Town Centre.

• The Main Street location is free of physical

constraints that could otherwise limit block size or development flexibility. By virtue of its east-west axis,Main Street will have a continuous 'sunny-side' thatsuits cafes and street-based activities.

• Main Street provides a direct connection acrossPlenty Road to the residential precinct to the west.This provides residents with a strong pedestrian linkto the Town Centre.

Main Street will continue in an easterly direction across the rail reservation and the Plenty River to provide a direct connection into the residential areas and the neighbourhood activity centre in Precinct 28. This road extension will have the dual benefits of enhancing the performance of the Town Centre and the Precinct 28 neighbourhood activity centre. In addition, it will draw traffic from Precinct 28 towards the Town Centre and Plenty Road and away from Yan Yean Road. Furthermore, traffic pressure at the Plenty Road I Bridge Inn Road intersection will be alleviated.

Ffom an urt>an planning perspective, the connection is desirable because it will integrate the east and west sections of the Memda growth corridor that are bisected by the Plenty River. It will improve the commercial viability of the Town Centre and enable higher density residential development around the mixed-use core and the transport hub. The road extension will further the sustainability objectives of the Mernda Strategy Plan by strengthening the Town Centre and therefore encouraging more intensive residential development on the site. This results in a more efficient use of land and reduces pressure for future urban expansion beyond the designated growth area boundaries.

A ·second Street' will run perpendicular to Main Street and Bridge Inn Road to provide an additional north-south route to complement Plenty Road. The intersection of Second Street and Main Street creates the four super-blocks that form the mixed-use core of the Town. The intersection of these streets will represent the notional 'heart' of the Town and could support community buildings on one comer.

Second Street will cross Berry Lane and provide a connection to the employment park south of the core mixed-use area. To the north of the Town Centre, Second Street will continue over Bridge Inn Road before deviating to the north-west and crossing Plenty Road to provide a link into the residential areas in Precinct 3.

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Plenty Road will ultimately be constructed as a four-lane d

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vided road that carries in excess of 30,000 vehicles per day. This environment is considered too hostile to support a pedestrian-oriented street fabric llut is appropriate for larger· scale highway development Plenty Road does however have the capacity to support finer-grained retail near tts intersection with Bridge Inn Road. This is because the road reservation will be narrowed and the traffic slowed at this point. A slight tapering of the road pavement width on theapJl(oaches to the Plenty Road I Bridge Inn Road intersection will ensure the preservation of the Bridge Inn Hotel and the Mechanics lnstttute. It will have the additional advantage of calming traffic and preventing the intersection frombecoming a major pedestrian barrier that severs the Town Centre from its residential catchments to the north and west. A calmed traffic environment will sutt small-scale retail development with a built form that is sympathetic to the juxtaposed heritage buildings. This design treatment will not only Jl(Otect the heritage buildings, but also their context.

Bridge Inn Road iS projected to carry over 20,000 vehieles per day and will ultimately be constructed as a four-lane di\lided road. It will have similar characteriStics to Plenty Road in terms of its retail and commercial potential and, as a consequence, is not sutted to a Main Street function. Furthermore, the topographic constraints to the north of Bridge Inn Road would limit the block depth that could be achieved.

b) The Core Mixed-Use Area

The proposed Main Street and Second Street provide a structure for four super-blocks that can accommodate large· format retail buildings and associated car parking. These are shown in Rgure 1.

Super-block 1 can support a full-line supermarket of

approximately 3,300m2 that is sleeved by a range of specialty

shops with direct street frontage. This will be the Town's major supermarket and will meet the weekly shopping requirements of local residents. Sufficient land is available for an internalised car park to complement on-street parking. Mid-block access will be provided from Bridge Inn Road to Main Street. The Town Centre is expected to grow outwards from this corner.

Super-block 2 iS the site for a second smaller supermarket and specialty shops. This supermarket will also be sleeved by fine-grain shops that present directly to Main Street and Second Street. An internal car park will be provided behind the speciality shops that line the northern and eastern edges of this super-block.

Super-block 3 will support community buildings wtth frontage to Second Street. Retail buildings will be provided on the frontages to Main Street and the Bridge Inn Road service lane. Some medium density residential development, possibly with ground floor retail, can be provided on the south-east comer of the super-block. Car parking and a green space will also be provided within this super-block.

FIGURE 1 THE CORE MIXEO-USE AREA COMPRISES FOUR SUPER-BLOCKS

MERNDA TOWN CENTRE COMPREHENSIVE DEVELOPMENT PLAN

Super-block 4 will support a discount department store (DDS)

with a presume<! floor area of around 7,000m2• The DDS will be sleeved by fine-grain retail premises along its frontage to Main Street and Second Street. The DDS building will however have a prominent entry point from the south-east corner of the Main Street I Second Street intersection. A large car park for the DDS can be provided at the southern end of the super-block.

Multi-level buildings that can accommodate a vertical mixingof uses, including a residential component, will be encouraged in the Town Centre core.

c) Retail and Commercial Development Outside the

Mixed-Use Core

The Comprehensive Development Plan makes provision for coarse-grain retail development that is not suited to the pedestrian-oriented Main Street. This form of development is variously referred to as 'highway sales', 'peripheral sales' or 'bulky goods retail'. It typically requires large pad-sites and arterial road frontage, generally with service road access. Other land uses such as petrol-filling stations, garden supplies, and fast-food restaurants have similar needs.

The Comprehensive Development Plan will accommodate this form of development by providing numerous sites on the western side of Plenty Road and on either side of Bridge Inn Road. Sites in the employment park with frontage to Second Street may also be suitable for this type of retailing. These sites are confined to the limits of the Comprehensive Development Plan area to ensure a compact urban form.

d) Medium Density Housing

The provision of quality medium density housing in and around the Town Centre will underpin tts functionality and viability. For a traditional mixe<l-use town centre to perform optimally, there needs to a substantial resident population nearby.

The Comprehensive Development Plan supports extensive medium density residential development in close proximtty tothe core mixed-use area and the transport hub. This includes sites for multi-level apartment buildings at the eastern end of Main Street The density of residential development in the subject plan area should be in the order of 20 lots per hectare (gross developable area). Buildings with a vertical scale will be encouraged to create attractive streetscapes. Such buildings will also allow a vertical mixing of uses.

Approximately 6.1 hectares of land has been designated to support medium density housing near the south-east comer of the intersection of Bridge Inn Road and the railway reservation. Intensive residential development in this location will provide energy to the mixed-use core of Town Centre and support the public transport. Direct frontage to the Plenty Gorge Parklands will support innovative housing design and a high level of urban amentty.

MERNDA TOWN CENTRE COMPREHENSIVE DEVELOPMENT PLAN

To the south of the Town's mixed-use core, there will be another extensive tract of medium density residential development. This will extend to the south of the Berry Lane heritage feature where it adjoins the employment park.

Medium density residential development is to occur on the periphery of the retaiVcommercial components of the Town Centre, to the north of Bridge Inn Road, and to the west of Plenty Road. It will also be promoted in the existing Mernda settlement as redevelopment progressively occurs following connection to a reticulated sewerage system.

e) The Employment Park

The Comprehensive Development Plan provides approximately 7.7 hectares in an employment park.

This site can potentially accommodate a wide array of employment-generating land uses that are compatible with nearty residential areas that do not detract from the amenity of the Town Centre environment. Detailed design guidelines to control building size and form will be included within the Development Plan for the employment pa11<. It is particularty important to maintain high design standards along Second Street as this route is a gateway to the core mixed-use area.

I) The Transport Hub

Provision has been made for a major transport hub to form an anchor at the eastern end of Main Street. It may comprise a rail station and bus terminal. The site is well-integrated with supporting residential and retail land uses. The detaile<I design of the transport hub will be determined when Development Plans are prepare<!.

g) Other Land Uses

The Comprehensive Development Plan includes several parcels of open space. The most significant of these contain the Mayfield Farm complex and the historic Berry Lane. These places, which both have an A-rating in the Whittlesea Heritage Study (1991), have been woven into the design to generate a strong sense of place.

In the south-eastern portion of the Town Centre, provision has been made for a stormwater retarding basin in general accordance with Melbourne Water's requirements. The precise location and configuration of this facility will need to be determine<! at the detailed design phase.

There should be direct development frontage to the retarding basin so that it contributes positively to urtan amenity as well as stormwater management.

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Pelham Design Studio 120503

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CDZ Boundary

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