Wavell Heights’ love for pets is evident in the growing number of dog-friendly cafes, bars, and parks across the suburb. For locals looking for an off-leash park for their furry little friends, the Downfall Creek Reserve along Brickyard Rd in Virginia is the perfect destination.
More commonly known to the locals as the Downfall Creek Dog Park, this 4-hectare off-leash area is one of the largest off-leash areas across Brisbane. Apart from the Brickyard Road in Virginia, the nearest entries are from the Jefferis Street or Bilsen Rd in Wavell Heights.
A haven for dogs, the park is unfenced so dogs can play and run around freely. It is dotted with shady trees and the odd picnic shelter, so it’s a nice place for pet parents to enjoy nature.
Dog bins and water taps are provided at each end, so bringing pets along the Downfall Creek Dog Park at will not be much of a hassle.
You’ll also find the Downfall Creek Bikeway and fitness circuits at the park. The 10-km cycle path is great for kids while Fox Coffee, a nine-minute walk from the reserve is a nice way to fuel up before taking a stroll.
If you are up for more adventure, the nearby parks like the A.R.C. Hill Park in Virginia, Turquoise Place Park in Wavell Heights, and Nicholson Place in Northgate await.
The secret to beautiful homes is not so secret at all. Add some art, accessorize with unique homeware, and add some life to empty space by including some plants. For all your needs, stop by The Home Collective Market on 3 March 2019 and shop for handmade homeware and garden goodies!
With a gold coin donation, anyone can take part in this event hosted by Junk to Funk. The Home Collective Market begins 9:00 am and finishes at 1:00 pm. More than 50 stalls await home and garden lovers at 175 Edinburgh Castle Rd in Wavell Heights.
“Due to our lovely hall getting a small refresh, The Home Collective will be a little different on March 3rd… We’re going completely OUTDOORS! Still the same location, our 50+ stall holders will just be outside altogether,” The Home Collective posted on Instagram.
Seriously Home will be back for The Home Collection Market’s first market event this year, along with Broadcroft Design and Home Dweller. New stall holders include The Tea Whisperer, CazCreations, and Papercutz. There will be stunning artwork from Fabulous Frida and tropical-inspired artworks from Annie Moncrieff Creative.
The first Home Collective Market in 2016 was a successful event and it was followed by another event in just two weeks time. Junk to Funk, who will be hosting this year’s event, is known for creating handmade, unique, and vintage-inspired projects from recycled materials.
The gold coin entry will be used by The Home Collective for raising funds for the Animal Welfare QLD. Participants could drink some coffee from Two Hounds Espresso and eat at The Collective Kitchen during the event.
Selected residents of Banyo, Nudgee and Nudgee Beach and Banyo Village will be able to avail of the Council Cabs Service at the Banyo Retail Centre fortnightly beginning 21 Feb.
Councillor Adam Allan announced the extension of the service for Brisbane residents who are above 60 years old, or with mobility impairment, or a holder of the Pensioner Concession Card or the Centrelink Seniors Card.
The Council Cabs are scheduled taxis that may pick up residents from their home to the Banyo Retail Centre or bring residents home after shopping with their companions. A one-way trip costs $1.50, which shall be paid to the driver upon boarding.
Commuters may book the service before 12 noon or make prior arrangements should they require regular pick-ups. The Council Cabs Service number is 07 3403 2227.
Cr Allan, however, said that the exact location of the service pick-up point at the Banyo Retail Centre would still be determined. It’s likely that the chosen location may be near the supermarket to help residents with groceries. A limit of five regular-sized plastic bags or three recycled bags may be required per passenger.
To reduce the likelihood of crime and make commuters feel more secure, Queensland Rail has invested $1.9 million to construct a new Queensland Police Service outpost at Northgate station.
The railway police outpost will be the eighth across the South East Queensland network, joining Robina, Roma Street, Manly, Beenleigh, Petrie, Ipswich, and Redbank.
Although Brisbane is a safe city by world standards, the Productivity Commission’s Report on Government Services revealed that half of the Queenslanders surveyed preferred walking alone at night. They avoided buses and trains due to danger of assault.
Not only do railway stations have issues with youth gangs and individuals harassing passengers, but alighting at a poorly lit, eerily quiet train station can also be unsettling.
Committed to improving the safety of their passengers, QR has implemented various security measures that includes closed-circuit television at stations and within trains as well as patrols by Revenue Protection Officers, uniformed and plain-clothed police officers of the network’s own squad, and security guards.
Photo credit: mypolice.qld.gov.au
The additional outpost at Northgate is expected to boost police presence on the northern rail network and enable quicker response times to incidents on the inner Caboolture, Shorncliffe and Doomben lines.
Construction of the new outpost is well underway and expected to be completed by early 2019. It will be located on the western side of Northgate station, on the corner of Ridges and Ryan streets.
The Brisbane City Council is now in the process of preparing the strategy and improvement proposal for the Wavell Heights Village Precinct Project to revitalise the neighbourhood shopping precinct in Hamilton Road, Wavell Heights.
As part of the Village Precinct Projects, the Council is committing $400,000 to the upgrade project that aims to: improve the amenity, connectivity, and safety for the locals and residents in the centre; contribute to and encourage local economic development; enhance the community’s sense of place at this neighbourhood centre.
Photo Credit: Brisbane City Council / brisbane.qld.gov.au
During the three-week consultation, the Council received more than 110 survey responses and more than 30 people have engaged at the onsite information kiosk last 8 December 2018. The scope of the project stretches from Hamilton Road, Millcan, and Stadcor Street intersection on the right to just past the Hamilton Road and Albar Street corner on the left.
A number of possible improvements include: new footpath surface; shrub and tree planting; improved accessibility to shops through works such as kerb ramp and pavement changes; placemaking elements to enhance centre character and identity and to create a focal point for the community.
By late March 2019, improvement proposal will be on display in the Wavell Heights shopping centre and other key locations and construction is expected to begin in April 2019. Upon completion, which should be around mid-2019, locals and businesses will be invited to an activation event to celebrate and promote the revitalised neighbourhood centre.
Brisbane City Council commences with the upgrade works on Murphy Road and Ellison Road intersection in Geebung, this December 2018. The project aims to improve traffic efficiency, ease congestion, and improve safety for all road users.
As part of the Council’s $1.3 billion commitment on more than 90 road improvement projects, the upgrade started mid-December which involves the installation of a signalised intersection and some associated widening adjacent to the Murphy Road and Ellison Road intersection.
Murphy Road and Ellison Road intersection upgrade plan
Photo Credit: Brisbane City Council / brisbane.qld.gov.au
Also included in the Murphy Road and Ellison Road intersection upgrade:
provision of a three-lane southbound approach on Murphy Road
widening Ellison Road to four lanes between Danette Street and Gambia Street
upgrading the Kittyhawk Drive and Murphy Road intersection to include additional through lanes in each direction a right-turn pocket into Kittyhawk Drive and a U-turn facility for southbound traffic
signalising the Butt Street and Murphy Road intersection to include a pedestrian crossing, a right-turn pocket into Butt Street, and a new mini-roundabout at the intersection of Butt Street and Fernlea Street to enhance traffic movements for residents
providing additional off-road car parking adjacent to Marchant Park and 7th Brigade Park
incorporating on-road cycle lanes in both directions on Murphy Road and Ellison Road
converting Marathon Street and Blackwood Road to left-in, left-out access only to improve safety
constructing a new access road to Navarre Street
providing indented bus stops adjacent to the Murphy Road and Ellison Road intersection
landscaping and line marking.
Murphy Road and Ellison Road intersection upgrade – fly-through
Video Credit: Brisbane City Council / YouTube
Construction works will take place between 7 A.M. and 5 P.M., Monday to Saturday; critical components of the project will be undertaken at night between 7 P.M. and 5 A.M., Sunday to Thursday. For the duration of the project, the speed limit in the area will be reduced to 40 km/hr.
Once completed, by early 2020, the project should deliver the following benefits: enhanced safety for all road users by signalised Murphy Road and Ellison Road intersection, reduced travel time, controlled signalised pedestrian crossing facilities along Murphy Road, indented bus bays, and improved connectivity and safety for pedestrian access to public and active transport options and local parklands areas.
There will also be provision of on-street cycle lanes on both sides of Murphy Road and Ellison Road, as well as off-street parking to offset the loss of informal parking along the Murphy Road verge.
December is arguably one of the months when consumers buy lots of stuff, but kids nowadays are getting better at buying smart. For instance, three exceptional Wavell State High School students were amongst the winners of the Office of Fair Trading’s (OFT) Buy Smart Competition for school-age students.
The Buy Smart Competition challenges students to get creative and share what they know about shopping and money issues. The competition helps young consumers show what they know about refund rights, scams, online shopping, product labelling, and more.
Kyle Montgomery was Highly Commended for his creative work. Photo credit: Office of Fair Trading
According to Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath, the array of high-quality entries received for this year’s competition showcased the students’ excellent consumer knowledge as well as their artistic and technical skills.
“The Buy Smart Competition challenges students in Years 4 to 12 to choose a consumer issue, research it, then present it as an interesting creative project that can educate their chosen audience,” she said.
Hannah Viney and Lani Raghavan won second place for their informative entry. Photo credit: Office of Fair Trading
“Young people are being brought up in a digital age and are exposed to social media, online advertising and app store purchases earlier than ever before, so I’m pleased to know many of our young consumers are learning to identify consumer-related risks.”
More than 6,000 students participated in Buy Smart school presentations this year and the Office of Fair Trading received entries from more than 750 students.
Photo credit: Wavell State High School/Facebook
For Wavell State High School, Kyle Montgomery got the Highly Commended award for the Years 10–12 category.
Photo credit: Wavell State High School/Facebook
Other smart young consumers from the state high include Hannah Viney and Lani Raghavan who won second place for the Years 7–9 category.
Following is the full list of winners for Buy Smart Competition 2018:
Category Years 4–6
First: Mckenzie Kirkham – St Paul’s Lutheran Primary School (Caboolture)
Second: Matthew Mynett and Soren Zschech – Kurwongbah State School (Petrie)
Third: Skye Hetaraka and McKenzie Sanker – Boondall State School (Boondall)
Highly Commended:
Ella Macuga and Lucy Stone – Nundah State School (Nundah)
Amelia Gray and Emma Heijboer – Kurwongbah State School (Petrie)
Nicholas Bray Alex Wong, Jonathon Culley, and Mitchell Burchard – Faith Lutheran College (Victoria Point)
Category Years 7–9
First: Emily Baxter and Sarah Fenner – Loreto College (Coorparoo)
Second: Hannah Viney and Lani Raghavan – Wavell State High School (Wavell Heights)
Third: Zion Cordero, Sebastian Hurcum and Mack Geiger – Trinity College (Gladstone)
Highly Commended:
Madelize Breet and Alison Wu – Sheldon College (Sheldon)
Lily Ji and Tiana Tong – St Aidan’s Anglican Girls School (Corinda)
Caitlin Turner – Clayfield College (Clayfield)
Amelia Wakefield – Redlands College (Wellington Point)
Drishti – Toolooa State High School (Gladstone Central)
Angela Greer – James Nash State High School (Gympie)
Category Years 10–12
First: Paris Teevan, Taya Kesby and Eloise O’Donnell – St Aidan’s Anglican Girls School (Corinda)
Second: Elisa Tamai, Gabrielle Christou, and Rose Ringelstein – St Aidan’s Anglican Girls School (Corinda)
Third: Khushi Kadia and Jasmine Kaur – Aspley State High School (Aspley)
Highly Commended: Kyle Montgomery – Wavell State High School (Wavell Heights)
Geebung is among the most liveable and most affordable suburbs in Brisbane; this, along with quite a few other surprises, are what has been revealed in the latest property report released for Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Hobart.
The liveability factors include low crime rate; proximity (within a 5-km radius) to amenities such as schools, green space, public transport, shopping centres, and health care facilities; and an unemployment rate on par or lower in comparison to the State’s average.
Three suburbs, within a 20-km radius of the CBD, stood out as the most liveable and affordable hotspots in Brisbane for homes: Aspley, Everton Park, and Geebung — all north of Brisbane. This was in contrast to previous reports, where hotspots were distributed in all regions of Brisbane.
Affordable and Liveable Hotspots Suburbs in Brisbane for Houses
Suburb
Median Price1
Rental Yield
Future Projects2
Aspley
$600,000
3.9 %
2.0 million
Everton Park
$605,000
3.8 %
6.9 million
Geebung
$545,000
3.9 %
7.6 million
Source: PRDNationwide / prd.com.au
1Median price captures sales transactions from 1 January 2018 to 30 September 2018
2Project Development (Future Projects) is based on an aggregate of estimated construction value for residential, commercial, industrial, mixed-use, and infrastructure projects scheduled to commence in the 2nd half of 2018.
National Overview – Affordable and Liveable Guides – Second Half 2018
Geebung, approximately within the 15.1-km radius from the CBD, is where first-time buyers can take advantage of affordability and proximity to amenities such as schools, parklands, medical centres, and shops, as well as access to public transport.
A median price growth of 0.9 percent, rental yield of 3.9 percent (above the Brisbane Metro average of 3.8 percent), and $7.6 million worth of future developments make Geebung a desirable suburb for property investment.
Among the most liveable cities, Brisbane and Sydney are tied at the top spot with an average liveability cost of 3 percent. Melbourne and Hobart follow with 10 percent and 12 percent respectively.
Affordability wise, Brisbane houses, with a price tag of $500,000 or less, have become more accessible, increasing from 10.6 percent in the 2nd half 2017 to 12.4 percent in the 2nd half of 2018. For the same period, premium houses ($2 million and above) have dropped from 1.1 percent to 0.0 percent.
Affordability vs. Liveability
Capital City
1st Half of 2018
Premium
2nd Half of 2018
Premium
Liveability Cost
House
Units
House
Units
House
Units
Average
Brisbane
60 %
30%
75%
20%
15%
-10%
3%
Melbourne
60 %
40%
95%
25%
35%
-15%
10%
Hobart
72%
40%
100%
35%
28%
-5%
12%
Sydney
135%
80%
160%
60%
25%
-20%
3%
Source: PRDNationwide / prd.com.au
Accessible Suburbs by Price Range
Price Range
2nd Half 2017 report
1st Half 2018 report
2nd Half 2018 report
BNE
SYD
MELB
BNE
SYD
MELB
BNE
SYD
MELB
$0 – $500K
10.6%
0.0%
11.2%
10.6%
0.0%
1.9%
12.4%
1.4%
1.4%
$500K-$800K
52.9%
1.4%
37.5%
52.9%
0.9%
21.4%
51.4%
3.7%
21.7%
$800K-1M
18.0%
7.4%
16.2%
21.2%
6.9%
14.6%
20.5%
9.3%
18.9%
$1M – $2M
13.8%
51.6%
27.2%
11.1%
52.6%
52.4%
12.4%
56.3%
50.5%
$2M+
1.1%
33.6%
4.2%
1.1%
35.8%
9.7%
0.0%
25.6%
5.2%
Hobart – Price Range
2nd Half 2017 report
1st Half 2018 report
2nd Half 2018 report
$0 – $350K
28.6%
26.1%
8.2%
$350K- $500K
28.6%
26.1%
24.5%
$500K – $650K
28.6%
21.7%
32.7%
$650K – $800K
10.7%
19.6%
24.5%
$800K+
3.6%
6.5%
10.2%
Source: PRDNationwide / prd.com.au
Other surprises in the Affordable & Liveable Property Guide 2nd Half 2018 report include:
All the affordable and liveable suburbs in Sydney had negative annual median price growth, a first since 2015; a sign that the Sydney property market is already cooling down.
All affordable suburbs in Hobart failed to meet the liveability criteria; an indicator that there is already a strong need to address the liveability aspects in these affordable spots.
Melbourne, among all capital cities, has turned out to be the most resilient in terms of price growth and ease of satisfying the affordable areas’ liveability aspects.
Judging by the over five million containers returned and recycled in participating depots across Queensland such as the Geebung Recycling Centre, the first week of the Containers Refund Scheme has been an overwhelming success.
Minister for Environment and the Great Barrier Reef Leeanne Enoch shared this sentiment eight days into the November launch. The five million containers returned, including the 780,000 in Wide bay and 770,000 in Townsville, meant that half a million dollars of cash has either been given back to participating Queenslanders or benefitted charities and community groups.
“It is wonderful to see so many Queenslanders getting on board with Containers for Change,” Ms Enoch said.
Queensland Container Refund Scheme Video Credit: Mueller Aviation/YouTube
The Containers Refund Scheme or “Containers for Change” aims to encourage recycling and reduce waste by providing a way for customers to return eligible containers in exchange for a ten cent refund. The scheme has also created about 500 new job opportunities at the container refund points located across the state.
The more than five million containers being recycled greatly impressed Container Exchange (CoEx) CEO Ken Noye. Container Exchange (CoEx) is responsible for implementing and managing the Container Refund Scheme.
“That’s a massive result which is bound to have a positive impact on our environment…We also now have 27,000 people signed up with a scheme ID, allowing them to be paid their refund straight into their bank account,” he said. Charities and community groups who are interested in being part of the scheme are encouraged to sign-up as well.
“People are able to support local community groups by donating their containers and we encourage social purpose organisations to sign up for the scheme.
“We’d love to see communities get behind Containers for Change to raise funds for schools, sporting clubs and other not-for-profits,” Mr Noye said.
TOMRA – The Cleanest Loop
Video credit: TOMRA/tomra.com
TOMRA operates the 10 recycling centres in South East Queensland: Brisbane Metro (West End, Salisbury, Seventeen Mile Rocks, Tingalpa, Geebung and Crestmead), Ipswich, Toowoomba, the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast. Eligible containers can be returned using the centre’s reverse vending machines or a ‘drop and go’ bag drop service. Large numbers of containers from businesses or community groups may be returned to process through TOMRA’s high-volume bulk sorting and counting equipment.
Park ‘n’ ride spaces at Geebung train station will soon see a much needed expansion, thanks to a commitment by the State Government to add over 2,300 park and ride spaces across Southeast Queensland.
The Geebung park and ride facility will get funds amounting to $3.1 million to increase the number of parking slots from 36 to 106. Detailed planning started in mid-2018, and currently, the expansion project is in the consultation stage.
The park and ride expansion is part of the $114-million election promise of the Palaszczuk government.
“This investment will make it even easier for customers to access public transport which will in turn reduce road congestion,” Transport and Main Roads Minister Mark Bailey said.
“The commitment will add about 2,300 new car parks to the more than 30,000 spaces already available for commuters across South East Queensland.
“Park ‘n’ ride facilities are an important element of the transport network and, when delivered in the right locations, allow customers to connect with high frequency public transport where walking, cycling and connecting public transport options are limited.”
Other train stations that will get a piece of the funding include Virginia train station, which will see an increase from 20 to 70 spaces. The Eight Mile Plains bus station will see park and ride spaces increasing from 858 to 1.058.
The biggest expansion will happen at Springfield Central train station, which will increase park ‘n’ ride spaces from 492 to 1,142.
Queensland’s peak motoring body approved of the expansion plans as this would relieve choking of local streets.
For more information on public transport, go to the Translink website at translink.com.au.
