The report of my death is an exaggeration: central city retailing in Melbourne since 1900
In most North American cities, the Central Business District has declined as a retail centre, from a historical position of absolute dominance. In many US metropolitan areas, the CBD is no longer the largest single retail centre; in most others, it is merely primus inter pares. It is generally assumed that a similar process has been at work in Melbourne and other Australian cities, as suburban sprawl and the rise of the motor car have reduced the relative accessibility of the centre. This proposition is evaluated by analysing historical and statistical sources of information about the distribution of the retail trade in Melbourne. The evidence appears to be that Melbourne's CBD was relatively weak at the turn of the century, but steadily increased in importance, eclipsing suburban rivals, until World War II or shortly afterwards. Since that time, there has been a relative decline, but Melbourne's CBD retains a greater significance in the metropolitan retail trade than is the case in other Australian and N...
Retail form in Melbourne and Brisbane: A preliminary investigation into the differences between the two cities
Retail facilities are a critical element of urban form often given insufficient consideration by the planning profession. While retail form has implications for matters such as consumer accessibility, quality of service and transport patterns and has been the subject of investigations overseas, there have been comparatively few investigations into the nature of retail form in Australia and the factors that shape that form. Elements to be considered include the spatial distribution, location and ownership of retailing as well as the diversity and number of shops. Using a variety of secondary documentary and other sources this paper seeks to examine retail form in Brisbane and Melbourne. Initial impressions suggest that Melbourne may have retained a greater number of traditional strip shopping centres, while Brisbane appears to have a greater number of corporately owned shopping malls. The research will aim to build a profile of each city's retail form, within the limitations of available data, before attempting to suggest reasons for variation found in the development of retail in both cities. Later research will investigate the extent to which planning strategies, heritage protection or other forms of planning regulation may have shaped the retail landscape.
Measuring the Impact of Inner City Markets on CBD Retail Sales
Excerpt] Observers of Central Business District (CBD) retailing performance have reported many adjustments in recent decades. Sales have steadily declined, relatively and absolutely, since World War II. The function and trade area of the CBD has changed, the clientele is different, and retail establishments have adopted new locational strategies. Contributing substantially to the changing character of CBDs has been the pervasive and continuing decentralization of the metropolitan population. Nearly two decades ago, Vance (1962) conceptualized the impact of this decentralization process as one of relegating the CBD to that of (1) a seller of mass appeal goods to an inner city market and (2) a seller of specialty goods to the metropolitan market. More recently, it appears that a scaling back has also occurred in the specialty goods area. Increasingly, specialty goods sales have been sustained by those who are downtown because of employment or business.