Geelong, Surf Coast boom as cheaper homes, city jobs attract Melburnians
Read the full article: By Joanna Crothers Mon 17 Jul 2017 ABC News
Victoria’s second-largest city is experiencing a population boom as Melbourne-based government workers are relocated to Geelong. Some residents are welcoming a cosmopolitan culture change, but others fear it is making housing unaffordable.
Greater Geelong has a population of about 240,000, but that is forecast to exceed 320,000 by 2036. Six-hundred of those new residents are expected to move down from Melbourne by June to work at the new headquarters of WorkSafe.
The work safety authority’s relocation to Geelong follows the Transport Accident Commission’s (TAC) move from Melbourne in 2009.
Dr Yolanda Esteban, a lecturer in Architecture and Urban Planning at Deakin University, said there had been massive growth in the region for the last 15 years, but it has recently intensified.
“Geelong has particularly changed over the last five or six years, with the growth of population coming down from Melbourne and other regional centres,” she said. Dr Esteban said the development of eateries and bars in Geelong’s laneways and the growth of retail outlets had revitalised the city centre.
“The culture has changed a bit. It’s become a really attractive place for people in its post-industrial life.”
