Suburbs

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<p class="legacy"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.15999984741211px;"><strong>EXPERT OBSERVATION</strong> </span></p>
<p class="legacy"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.15999984741211px;">International students made up more than 30 per cent of the population in some Australian suburbs before borders closed to prevent the spread of COVID-19.</span></p>
<p>The Mitchell Institute mapped where international students lived using data from the ABS census and Department of Home Affairs.</p>
<p>The results show striking growth in capital cities, and in some regional areas.</p>
<p>The mapping highlights how international students have become intertwined in Australia’s social fabric. Not only do they contribute A$38 billion to the economy annually and support 130,000 jobs (at any one time), they are also important members of local communities.</p>
<p>The Mitchell Institute research helps illustrate how, beyond universities’ suffering at the loss of international students, local businesses and communities are also being negatively affected.</p>
<p>City areas and suburbs close to university campuses have the most international students.</p>
<p>The centre of Melbourne had the largest number of international students in the country – at almost 20,000, or 38 per cent of the resident population. The neighbouring suburb of Carlton has the next largest with 9,600 or 39 per cent of the population.</p>
<p>The Canberra suburb of Acton, where ANU is located, had one of the highest proportions of international students in the country – at about 44 per cent.</p>
<p><img src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/static_files/files/1075/Canberra.gif?1592181779" width="100%">International students in Canberra.</p>
<p>Many international students have chosen to live in suburbs further away from university campuses, too.</p>
<p>We estimate more than 10 per cent of the population in the Sydney suburbs of Hurstville and Strathfield were international students.</p>
<p><img src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/static_files/files/1074/Sydney.gif?1592181643" width="100%"><span style="font-size: 12.16px;">International students in Sydney.</span></p>
<p>International students made up more than 5 per cent of the population in areas such as Dandenong and Laverton in Melbourne, Joondalup in Perth, and Regency Park in Adelaide.</p>
<p>Affordable property and good transport links may make these suburbs attractive options.</p>
<p><img src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/static_files/files/1073/Adelaide.gif?1592181536" width="100%"><span style="font-size: 12.16px;">International students in Adelaide.</span></p>
<p>Regional areas have also benefited from international students, especially those with university campuses. For instance, in Darling Heights and Gatton in regional Queensland, more than 5 per cent of the population were international students.</p>
<h2><span style="font-family: Tahoma, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.16px;">Wherever international students live they will be important parts of communities and economies.</span></h2>
<p>We also examined Universities Australia’s student finance data to identify the type of businesses that benefit most from international education.</p>
<p>We found over 36 per cent of international student spending goes towards retail and entertainment. This is money that will be spent in Australian cafes, markets and other venues.</p>
<p>Another 36 per cent of spending went to property. As 65 per cent of international students rent, much of this income will support Australian property investors.</p>
<p>The benefits international students bring extend beyond the economy. They also volunteer, contribute to Australia’s cultural diversity and enhance our international standing.</p>
<p>This research helps illustrate the many different roles of international students. They are colleagues, friends, neighbours, tenants, customers, classmates and future world-leaders.</p>
<p>Many will also become future Australian citizens. Of 1.6 million international students who started their course between 2001 and 2014, 16 per cent were granted permanent residency and a pathway to citizenship.</p>
<h2><span style="font-family: Tahoma, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.16px;">Department of Home Affairs figures show over 120,000 current student visa holders are outside Australia.</span></h2>
<p>We estimate this translates into about 13,000 fewer people living in inner Melbourne due to travel restrictions. In places like Sydney’s city and inner south, this translates into 7,000 fewer people. In Adelaide’s Central and Hills region we estimate this means 5,000 fewer people.</p>
<p>These losses will grow as travels bans stop new international students replacing those who have finished their studies.</p>
<p>Every six months international students cannot enrol due to travel bans, between 110,000 to 140,000 won’t start their courses.</p>
<p>Problems with the international education sector will also affect Australian students. Domestic students share in the perspectives students from around the world bring into classrooms and the extra resources education institutions can afford because of them.</p>
<p>Early reports suggest more school leavers will choose to study at university because of an impending recession.</p>
<p>But while universities have capacity, there are currently funding caps which effectively limit the number of domestic students who can enrol.</p>
<p>Uncapping domestic university places will help ensure our universities can properly meet the needs of school leavers.</p>
<p>Continuing to support international students will also be vital. International students are particularly vulnerable to the economic impact of the pandemic. As non-citizens they are ineligible to access Australian government supports such as JobKeeper.</p>
<p>Many have had to rely on support packages offered by universities and state governments.</p>
<p>It is important that Australia continues to support international students who are struggling. This will signal to current and future international students that Australia values them and the enormous contribution they make to our country.</p>
<p><em><strong>Peter Hurley </strong>is a Policy Fellow at the Mitchell Institute Victoria University</em></p>
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International students were over 30% of some suburbs population pre-Covid: Peter Hurley 

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<p>A joint initiative of the Property Investment Professionals of Australia (PIPA) and CoreLogic has revealed the best performing locations for average annual capital growth in every city over the past decade.</p>
<p><span>The CoreLogic research found the city location with the highest annual capital growth in the nation over the past decade was Lakemba in the Canterbury region of Sydney, where house prices have increased by 8.4 per cent annually. Its median house value has more than doubled over the period to now be about $881,000.</span></p>
<p><span>The second place-getter was also in Sydney, this time in the Oatlands-Dundas Valley region of Carlingford, where house values grew by an average 8.1 per cent each year over the past decade. Its median house value has soared from $662,000 to $1.41 million over the past decade, according to the data.</span></p>
<p><span>Rounding out the top three, on 7.9 per cent annual average growth over 10 years, was Rockbank-</span><span>Mount Cottrell in Melbourne’s west </span><span>where its median house value has increased to nearly $600,000.</span></p>
<p><span>PIPA chairman Peter Koulizos said the national results showed a mix of affordable and prestige suburbs had performed well over the period.</span></p>
<p><span>However, the research also showed that locations within markets that were deemed subdued continued to record robust house value growth, he said.</span></p>
<p><span>“Even though Adelaide only recorded average annual growth of 1.3 per cent </span><span>over the past decade, its top performing location of Prospect saw prices increase by 3.4 per year </span><span>over the period,” Mr Koulizos said.</span></p>
<p><span>“L</span><span>ikewise, in Darwin, where prices reduced on average 1.9 per cent annually, in Rosebery-Bellamack median house values increased by 3.2 per cent at the same time.</span></p>
<p><span>“</span><span>This is actually quite common, because there are submarkets within markets which operate to the beat of their own drums, usually because of consistently strong demand from buyers keen to live or invest </span><span>in those locations.”</span></p>
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<p><span>The CoreLogic research also found that Sydney recorded the highest average annual capital growth over the decade at 5.5 per cent, followed by Melbourne on 4.9 per cent and Hobart on 3.4 per cent.</span></p>
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<p><span>City location</span></p>
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<p><span>State</span></p>
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<p><span>Average annual 10-year growth</span></p>
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<p><span>Greater Sydney</span></p>
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<p><span>NSW</span></p>
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<p><span>5.5%</span></p>
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<p><span>Greater Melbourne</span></p>
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<p><span>VIC</span></p>
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<p><span>4.9%</span></p>
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<p><span>Greater Brisbane</span></p>
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<p><span>QLD</span></p>
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<p><span>1.3%</span></p>
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<p><span>Greater Adelaide</span></p>
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<p><span>SA</span></p>
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<p><span>1.5%</span></p>
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<p><span>Greater Perth</span></p>
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<p><span>WA</span></p>
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<p><span>-1.4%</span></p>
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<p><span>Greater Hobart</span></p>
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<p><span>TAS</span></p>
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<p><span>3.4%</span></p>
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<p><span>Greater Darwin</span></p>
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<p><span>NT</span></p>
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<p><span>-1.9%</span></p>
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<p><span>Australian Capital Territory</span></p>
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<p><span>ACT</span></p>
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<p><span>2.8%</span></p>
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<p><span>Source: Corelogic.com.au</span></p>
<p><span>“The other capital cities recorded less than stellar average housing value growth </span><span>rates over the past decade,</span><span>” Mr Koulizos said.</span></p>
<p><span>“Annual growth of between 1.3 per cent to 2.8 per cent over the past decade </span><span>is part of the reason why so many investors and property investment experts are eyeing Brisbane, Adelaide and Canberra as potentially having the best capital growth prospects over the next 10-year period.</span><span>”</span></p>
<p><span>Darwin and Perth recorded negative annual growth over the period at -1.9 per cent and -1.4 per cent respectively, according to the research.</span></p>
<p><span>“</span><span>Investing in the housing market is typically a long-term strategy. Short-term movements are less important than the longer-term trends, which typically see housing values moving through a cycle where values will rise, fall and track sideways,</span><span>” </span><span>CoreLogic Head of Research Tim Lawless said.</span></p>
<p><span>“</span><span>The past 10 years has seen areas of Sydney and Melbourne outperform most other markets thanks to strong economic conditions and high rates of migration, which has fuelled housing demand, however, such high rates of capital gain have eroded housing affordability and compressed rental yields.</span><span>”</span></p>
<p><span>Mr Lawless said investors were likely to find that over the next 10 years the best performing markets are quite different.</span></p>
<p><span>“</span><span>Just as they were over the earlier decade where, for example, mining regions and regional coastal markets where some of the strongest performing areas,</span><span>” </span><span>he said.</span></p>
<p><span><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2020/3/4/CoreLogic.jpg" alt=""><br></span></p>
<p><em>Source: CoreLogic.com.au </em></p>
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Best performing suburbs over the past decade: PIPA & CoreLogic

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<p>Victoria is set to create 12 new suburbs across greater Melbourne, in a state bid to lower house prices.</p>
<p>State treasurer Tim Pallas will announce today the rezoning of the land over the next few years, according to The Australian Financial Review.</p>
<p>The new suburbs will include Beveridge North West, Wallan South and Wallan East, Merrifield North/Kalkallo Basin, Shenstone Park, Lindum Vale, Craigieburn West, Pakenham East, Officer South Employment precinct, Croskell, Kororoit Part 2 and Aviators Field.</p>
<p>The new suburbs will create around 50,000 new homes.</p>
<p>"The Andrews Labor government is planning for 12 new communities to sustain Melbourne's 15-year land supply, which is critical for keeping house and land packages affordable," Pallas told the AFR.</p>
<p>It is expected to be a challenge for the government to ensure that the newly rezoned housing areas have access to basic services such as public transport.</p>
<p>A study by Infrastructure Australia in October revealed that around 1.4m people residing in Melbourne's outer suburbs do not have immediate access to public transport services.</p>
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jonathanchancellor-7SQnKwU6yx

Victoria to create 12 new suburbs by rezoning land

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<p>GUEST OBSERVATION </p>
<p>Suburban affluence is the defining image of the good life under capitalism, commonly held up as a model to which all humanity should aspire.</p>
<p>More than half of the world’s population now lives in <a href="http://www.un.org/en/development/desa/news/population/world-urbanization-prospects-2014" target="_blank">cities</a>. Yet with the global economy already in gross <a href="https://www.footprintnetwork.org/our-work/ecological-footprint/" target="_blank">ecological overshoot</a>, and a world population heading for more than <a href="https://www.un.org/development/desa/en/news/population/world-population-prospects-2017" target="_blank">11 billion</a>, this way of living is neither <a href="https://www.jasonhickel.org/the-divide/">fair</a> nor sustainable.</p>
<p>To live within our environmental means, the richest nations will need to embrace a planned process of economic “<a href="https://theconversation.com/life-in-a-degrowth-economy-and-why-you-might-actually-enjoy-it-32224" target="_blank">degrowth</a>”. This is not an unplanned recession, but a deliberate downscaling of economic activity and the closely correlated consumption of <a href="https://beyondthisbriefanomaly.org/2018/10/18/carbon-civlisation-and-the-energy-descent-future-life-beyond-this-brief-anomaly/" target="_blank">fossil energy</a>. We don’t argue this is likely, only that it is necessary.</p>
<p>You might naturally assume this will involve pain and sacrifice, but we argue that a “<a href="https://griffithreview.com/wp-content/uploads/GR52_Alexander_Adcock-Ebook.FINAL_.pdf" target="_blank">prosperous descent</a>” is possible. Our new book, <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.palgrave.com/us/book/9789811321306" target="_blank">Degrowth in the Suburbs: A Radical Urban Imaginary</a>, envisions how this might unfold in the suburban landscapes that are currently emblematic of overconsumption.</p>
<p>The well-known documentary <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0446320/" target="_blank">The End of Suburbia</a> presented a coherent narrative of a post-petroleum future, but got at least one thing wrong. There is not a single end to suburbia; there are many ends of suburbia (as we know it).</p>
<p><strong>Reimagining the suburbs beyond fossil fuels</strong></p>
<p>Suburban catastrophists such as James Kunstler argue that fossil fuel depletion will turn our suburbs into urban wastelands. But we see the suburbs as an ideal place to begin retrofitting our cities.</p>
<p>This won’t involve tearing them down and starting again. Typically, Australia’s built environment is turned over at less than 5% per year. The challenge is to reinhabit, not rebuild, the suburban landscape. Here are some of the key features of this reinvigorated landscape:</p>
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<p>Suburbanites can and should <a href="https://retrosuburbia.com/" target="_blank">retrofit their homes and develop new energy practices</a> to prepare for an <a href="https://beyondthisbriefanomaly.org/2018/10/18/carbon-civlisation-and-the-energy-descent-future-life-beyond-this-brief-anomaly/" target="_blank">energy descent future</a>.</p>
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<p>Households must be encouraged to <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1469540512444019?journalCode=joca" target="_blank">downshift consumerism</a>, swapping superfluous “stuff” for more free time and other sources of meaning and well-being. An <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.amazon.com/Sufficiency-Economy-Enough-Everyone-Forever/dp/0994160615">economics of sufficiency</a> involves borrowing and sharing rather than always buying and upscaling.</p>
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<li>
<p>We should reclaim and reimagine areas of the built environment that are misused or underused. The vast areas dedicated to <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/dead-space-in-the-city-the-true-scale-of-vacant-car-parking-revealed-20180626-p4znu3" target="_blank">car parking</a> are but one example.</p>
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<p>Finally, and most importantly, we should realise that change must come via <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.amazon.com/City-Grassroots-Cross-Cultural-California-Development/dp/0520047567" target="_blank">grassroots political organisation</a>, rather than waiting for growth-fixated governments to lead the way. This is not to deny the need for “<a href="https://www.urban.com.au/property-observer" target="_blank">top-down</a>” structural change. Our argument is simply that the necessary action from governments will not arrive until there is an active culture of sufficiency that demands it.</p>
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<p>What social forces might produce this necessary but elusive urban transformation? We think it can be driven by two broad social groups: the <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.amazon.com/Loss-Happiness-Market-Democracies/dp/0300091060" target="_blank">disillusioned middle class</a> and the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-precariat-is-recruiting-youth-please-apply-10550" target="_blank">exploited working class</a>. These two groups, which already blur together along a spectrum, can potentially become a cohesive urban social movement of transformative economic and political significance.</p>
<p><strong>The disillusioned middle class: radical downshifters</strong></p>
<p>Our first groups consists of employed professionals, bureaucrats, and tradespeople who have secure housing, earn decent wages, and can direct significant portions of their income to discretionary spending. This sector of society participates, consciously or unconsciously, in what is often called “<a href="http://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780199756384/obo-9780199756384-0135.xml" target="_blank">consumer culture</a>”.</p>
<p>This consumerism often <a href="https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/high-price-materialism" target="_blank">fails to fulfil its promise</a> of a rich and meaningful life. The consumer class has been sold a lie, and many affluent consumers are now developing what social scientist Ronald Inglehart calls “<a href="https://ourworldindata.org/materialism-and-post-materialism" target="_blank">post-materialist</a>” goals and values. This emerging way of life involves seeking purpose and satisfaction in life through things other than material riches, including deeper community engagement, more time to pursue private passions, or even increased political action.</p>
<p>This is significant, for three reasons. First, <a href="https://link.springer.com/book/10.1057/978-1-137-30427-8" target="_blank">history</a> shows that social movements tend to be sparked by dissatisfaction with the status quo – otherwise, why would people resist or seek alternatives? The <a href="https://www.allenandunwin.com/browse/books/academic-professional/sociology/Affluenza-Clive-Hamilton-and-Richard-Denniss-9781741146714" target="_blank">deep disillusionment</a> with materialistic lifestyles provides an incentive to explore alternative, more satisfying ways to <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28461433" target="_blank">live</a> and <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959652611005142" target="_blank">self-provide</a>.</p>
<p>Second, by withdrawing their spending from the market economy, this emerging <a href="http://www.whpress.co.uk/EV/EV2214" target="_blank">social movement</a> can undermine that economy and fast-track its <a href="http://simplicityinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/CrashOnDemandSimplicityInstitute.pdf" target="_blank">transformation</a>.</p>
<p>Finally, a “radical downshifting” in consumption could allow people to free up their time by working less. This will provide people with more <a href="http://samuelalexander.info/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/EthicalPerspectives.pdf" target="_blank">time to participate</a> in building <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.amazon.com/Rise-Creative-Class-Transforming-Community/dp/1469281422" target="_blank">new forms</a> of economy and engaging in collective action for change. The “voluntary simplicity movement” already numbers as many as <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1469540512444019?journalCode=joca" target="_blank">200 million people</a>, although its potential depends on more organised and radical expressions.</p>
<p><strong>The exploited working class: economic builders</strong></p>
<p>Radical downshifters will never transform the economy on their own, and this is where our second group comes in. Working-class urbanites, while also drifting into superfluous consumption, are typically characterised as individuals and households who are “<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-precariat-is-recruiting-youth-please-apply-10550" target="_blank">battling</a>” to make ends meet.</p>
<p>Again, a growing dissatisfaction with the status quo provides the incentive to seek and participate in <a href="https://theconversation.com/karl-marx-wouldnt-agree-that-worker-power-has-been-killed-by-the-21st-century-95982" target="_blank">fundamental change</a>. We are often told that Australia’s economy has grown uninterrupted for a quarter-century, yet many people feel their personal circumstances have <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/mar/02/who-is-to-blame-for-australias-stalled-wages" target="_blank">stagnated</a>.</p>
<p>There has indeed been growth, yet almost all the benefits have been siphoned away by the <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/8/8/16112368/piketty-saez-zucman-income-growth-inequality-stagnation-chart" target="_blank">wealthy</a>. Why would the working class owe any allegiance to a system that only benefits the rich? As the battlers realise they are being oppressed and duped by an <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/richest-men-in-the-world-2274065153" target="_blank">unjust system</a>, they threaten to become a dynamite class of explosive <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.amazon.com.au/Precariat-New-Dangerous-Class/dp/1472536169" target="_blank">potential</a>.</p>
<p>As economic crises threaten to <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.amazon.com.au/Can-Avoid-Another-Financial-Crisis/dp/1509513736" target="_blank">intensify</a> in coming years – including the challenge of <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/automation-4443" target="_blank">automation</a> – we maintain that the exploited working class may be driven to explore alternative ways to self-provide. As incomes become more meagre and jobs less secure, more people will need to seek alternative ways of meeting economic needs “beyond the market”.</p>
<p><span class="caption">Whether through necessity or choice, we foresee a growing number of people beginning to participate in informal, non-monetary, and <a href="https://www.localfutures.org/wp-content/uploads/Post-growth-Localisation.pdf" target="_blank">local</a> economies, including the <a href="https://www.sharing.org/information-centre/articles/sharing-economy-short-introduction-its-political-evolution" target="_blank">sharing economy</a>. Just as radical middle-class downshifters will help stifle economic growth by withdrawing their discretionary spending, those who are less affluent could begin to lay alternative economic foundations, and provide a <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Take-Back-Economy-Transforming-Communities/dp/0816676070/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1531972992&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=take+back+the+economy" target="_blank">post-capitalist social safety net</a>.</span></p>
<p><strong>Working together</strong></p>
<p>We contend that these two social groups – the disillusioned middle class and the exploited working class – can conceivably form a cohesive movement with similar goals. The capitalist system isn’t working for many people, even those who are “winning” the rat race. Furthermore, historic growth trajectories seem to be coming to an end, due to both <a href="http://limits2growth.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/AETW-Policy-Briefing-No-1-digital.pdf" target="_blank">financial</a> and <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/property-observer" target="_blank">ecological</a> constraints.</p>
<p>Already, a diverse range of movements are working towards a new urbanity. These include <a href="https://theconversation.com/lets-reap-the-economic-benefits-of-local-food-over-big-farming-24478" target="_blank">local farmers’ markets</a> and community and home <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-it-time-to-resurrect-the-wartime-grow-your-own-campaign-66337" target="_blank">gardens</a>, <a href="https://3000acres.org/" target="_blank">urban agriculture projects</a>, freecycling groups, <a href="https://www.plutobooks.com/9780745334226/small-is-necessary/" target="_blank">sharing communities</a>, and repair cafes. It also includes the growing pool of climate activists, <a href="https://350.org/" target="_blank">divestment</a> organisers, <a href="https://www.retrosuburbia.com/" target="_blank">permaculture</a> groups, <a href="http://samuelalexander.info/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/The-Transition-Movement-Samuel-Alexander.pdf" target="_blank">transitions towns</a>, and progressive <a href="https://www.booktopia.com.au/green-bans-red-union-meredith-burgmann/prod9781742235400" target="_blank">unions</a>.</p>
<p>There is the small but vocal “<a href="https://www.saveoursuburbs.org.au/" target="_blank">save our suburbs</a>” network, in which we see the seeds of something more progressive. And it includes the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WeNaMlibiak" target="_blank">energy frugal households</a> quietly moving towards solar, batteries and increased energy self-suffiency. One by one, these households are <a href="https://reneweconomy.com.au/rooftop-solar-may-overtake-coal-by-2040-and-save-billions-20657/" target="_blank">undermining</a> the fossil fuel industry and subtly disrupting the status quo.</p>
<p>As financial and ecological crises deepen in coming years, the social consciousness needed to develop new systems of production and cultures of consumption will become compelling. Together these social groups (and others not yet imagined) could form an urban social movement that withdraws support for the existing system and begins building <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Take-Back-Economy-Transforming-Communities/dp/0816676070/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1531972992&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=take+back+the+economy" target="_blank">new economies</a> on our suburban streets.<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/108496/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;"></p>
<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/samuel-alexander-102353" target="_blank">Samuel Alexander</a>, Research fellow, Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-melbourne-722" target="_blank">University of Melbourne</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/brendan-gleeson-9823" target="_blank">Brendan Gleeson</a>, Director, Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-melbourne-722" target="_blank">University of Melbourne</a></em></p>
<p><em>This article is republished from <a href="http://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-suburbs-are-the-spiritual-home-of-overconsumption-but-they-also-hold-the-key-to-a-better-future-108496" target="_blank">original article</a>.</em></p>
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The suburbs hold the key to a better future: Samuel Alexander & Brendan Gleeson

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<p>Following on from Urban.com.au's piece looking at the <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/news/urbans-top-5-for-october-most-viewed-architects">Top 5 Most Viewed Architects</a>, today we look at the Top 5 Most Viewed Suburbs. Once again these will be favoured heavily towards Melbourne due to the site's history as Urban.com.au.</p>

<p>As the database and Urban.com.au's presence continues to expand into the other Australian cities no doubt these will change. But for now here are the Top 5 and their respective development pipelines;</p>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public//pictures/article-images/top_suburbs_oct.png" rel="gallery-all"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="209" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files//styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/top_suburbs_oct.png?itok=uHeMnblK" width="580"></a>

<figcaption> </figcaption></figure><h2><a href="https://www.urban.com.au/developments/melbourne-vic"><u><strong>1. Melbourne</strong></u></a></h2>

<p>The Victorian capital is experiencing an unprecedented level of population growth as it races towards becoming Australia’s largest city by 2030. This is being reflected in Melbourne’s strong development pipeline and investment in key infrastructure projects at state and local level, to ensure it remains among the world’s most liveable cities.</p>

<p>While the residential development pipeline appears to be winding down, the likes of West Side Place, Queens Place, Premier Tower, and By The Gardens are just beginning. In other words: the flurry of cranes that have been a permanent fixture on the Melbourne skyline for the last decade are set to remain for quite some time.</p>

<p><iframe frameborder="0" height="420px" src="https://www.urban.com.au/developments/melbourne-vic?embeddable=map" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<h2><a href="https://www.urban.com.au/developments/southbank-vic"><u><strong>2. Southbank</strong></u></a></h2>

<p>Southbank will continue its transformation over the next five years as it reaches for the sky, but also turns its focus to improving the quality of the public realm.</p>

<p>Significant developments include some of Australia's tallest buildings, with Australia 108 (317m), One Queensbridge Street (323m), and Southbank by Beulah (356m) joining Eureka Tower (297m) to produce a dramatic cluster of buildings.</p>

<p><iframe frameborder="0" height="420px" src="https://www.urban.com.au/developments/southbank-vic?embeddable=map" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<h2><a href="https://www.urban.com.au/developments/south-melbourne-vic"><u><strong>3. South Melbourne</strong></u></a></h2>

<p>Having experienced a steady rate of residential development over the last few years, South Melbourne doesn’t appear to be showing any signs of slowing down. A number of apartments are planned for Albert Road, Eastern Road, and Dorcas Street, exploiting views of Albert Park Lake, the Bay, and the Melbourne skyline.</p>

<p>South Melbourne is also experiencing an increase in commercial development around the South Melbourne Market precinct and along Moray Street, reinforcing the suburb’s status as an emerging office precinct of low to mid-rise developments.</p>

<p><iframe frameborder="0" height="420px" src="https://www.urban.com.au/developments/south-melbourne-vic?embeddable=map" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<h2><a href="https://www.urban.com.au/developments/footscray-vic"><u><strong>4. Footscray</strong></u></a></h2>

<p>Best remembered in the 90s for Franco Cozzo’s furniture store and iconic ads, Footscray will soon become synonymous with high-rise living as the suburb fulfils its potential as an activity centre and employment cluster, with support from the State Government and Maribyrnong City Council.</p>

<p><iframe frameborder="0" height="420px" src="https://www.urban.com.au/developments/footscray-vic?embeddable=map" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<h2><a href="https://www.urban.com.au/developments/west-melbourne-vic"><u><strong>5. West Melbourne</strong></u></a></h2>

<p>Acting as a gateway into the Melbourne CBD, West Melbourne is expected to see considerable development activity, with support from the Council to transform the industrial suburb into a village.</p>

<p>The City of Melbourne has developed a new structure plan for the area including the extension of trams down Spencer Street which would be re-imagined as a ‘high street.’</p>

<p><iframe frameborder="0" height="420px" src="https://www.urban.com.au/developments/west-melbourne-vic?embeddable=map" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<p>Keep an eye out for the Top 5 Most Viewed Local Government Areas tomorrow.</p>
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