(CITY TIMELAPSE)

Stretching across 9,990km

2
, Melbourne is a city which houses over four million people, and that
number is rising. How are we going to keep up with this influx of people?
And How can we improve a city which is already known as the Worlds most liveable city?
(BEGIN STOP START)
-The Community Project-
-By Reina Trias, Julie Tran and Bronte Alston-

This is Melbournes current housing situation:
The CBD covers 6km
2
, almost six times the size of Hobart
It is considered to be one of the most affordable and desirable cities to live in
The most common type of household is a person living by their self
The most common form of housing is an apartment
We are starting to become known as a Shoebox City
Nearly two thirds of residents are renting
Melbourne generally accommodates wealthy citizens earning an income of at least $103,000
The median sales price is $1,150,000
The population is expected to increase by about 30,000 residents by the year 2021

(MESSAGE BUBBLE)

How are we going to accommodate this new influx of people???

(ESCALATOR VID)

To find out, we set off on a journey across the CBD. Although we faced rejection, at least 20 people
agreed to take our survey to help us with our research. Some people were nice enough to actually
contribute on a personal level with stories and opinions. Here is what we discovered
(CHARTS AND DATA)
24% of interviewees were aged 18 and under, 9% aged 19-28, 24% aged 29-38, 19% aged 39-48, 19%
aged 49-59 and 5% were aged 60+. From this, an equal 20% of under 18s saw Education, Safety,
Entertainment, Communal Areas and Social Support as the most important features of a community.
100% of all 19-28 year old interviewees classed Education as a priority. 40% of 29-38 years olds said
Safety was the most important, followed by Social Support with 20%, Entertainment with 20% and
Communal Areas with 20%. Our interviewees aged 39-48 replied that Safety was by far the most
important feature of a community with 50%, and both Communal Areas and Medical Facilities
followed at 25%. 50% of interviewees aged 49-59 said that Accessibility was the biggest priority, with
25% for both Social Support and Safety. Half of our 60s and over category think that Accessibility is
the most important feature of a community, and the other half saying that Safety is.
At 29%, Safety was listed to be the most important, followed by Accessibility, Education and Social
Support at 13%. Communal Areas, Entertainment, Medical Facilities, Public Transport, Recreation
and Multiculturalism were included too.
We asked our interviewees whether they thought that Melbourne is currently appropriately priced,
and they came back with a variety of answers. 100% of the 19-29 category said NO, and 100% the
60+ category said YES. The other categories general stayed within the vicinity of 50/50, except for
the 49-59 year old category who only had 25% say that Melbourne is appropriately priced.
We also asked them how much they would be willing to pay for a quality apartment, and discovered
that overall, our interviewees were willing to pay about $548 a week.
Using this new found information, we have come up with an action plan
(ROLL OUT PLAN)
THE PLAN
Our plan is to incorporate accessibility, safety, communal areas, entertainment, educational
facilities, social support, multiculturalism, public transport access, recreational facilities, history and
sustainable features to create an affordable place of residence located in the CBD of Melbourne,
which brings a sense of community to a city which is becoming quite clinical and unhomely.
ACCESSIBILITY: We integrated the idea of accessibility by placing disability ramps which are located
at every main entry. We also included lifts to improve accessibility and provide a safe parking space
so that residents can park their car with reassurance.
SAFETY: We integrated safety into The Tracks by providing every resident with a key type card called
Kard which will only allow the resident into their own apartment. We are also placing CCTV
cameras around the establishment to ensure safety of its residence, and providing an on-site
security monitor 24 hours a day.
COMMUNAL AREAS: We have included parks, public seating, a gym, a rooftop entertainment centre,
cafes and restaurants. Communal areas allow the community to come together and create a close
family-like bond, which was seen as an important aspect of community. A community garden will be
included in the rooftop terrace and the surplus produce collected from this garden will be sold in the
pop-up organic stall within The Square (central area).
ENTERTAINMENT: On the rooftop, we have included an entertaining area with an outdoor cinema,
projection system, bean bags, ping pong table, community garden and a variety of seating options.
The point of this is to create social and community benefits for residents of The Tracks. There are
restaurants and cafes downstairs with live music as well.
EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES: An on-site tutor is available to residents, not only to attract families but to
help adults who have not been given educational opportunities. The Tracks is also a simple tram ride
away from a variety of public, private and selective entry schools.
SOCIAL SUPPORT: As well as a tutor, The Tracks offers a counselling service on the shopping strip to
residents who need support, or for anyone in the community who needs support as well. The cafes
in The Tracks are a part of an organisation which trains young homeless people to help them get off
the streets. In terms of the community, being exposed to people from the less fortunate sector of
society would be a benefit because they would be able to learn from them, and become a less
segregated society.
MULTICULTURALISM: Through research, we have discovered that the most concentrated language
groups in Melbourne are Vietnamese with 33%, Arabic with 29.4%, Italian with 20.8%, Mandarin
with 20.5% and Greek with 14.8%, so we decided to incorporate these cultures into the restaurants
we have provided on the shopping strip to increase our cultural diversity.
PUBLIC TRANSPORT ACCESS: Public Transport Victoria will provide a new tram stop just outside of
the entry/exit to the lobby to ensure easy access to public transport and to ease congestion at the
Flinders Street Station tram stop.
RECREATION: We have included a public gym and outdoor fitness park to provide for younger
residents or people who want to stay fit.
HISTORY: The location of The Tracks is in Federation Square East, using the historical Rail Corridor
train lines as a structural foundation. Plaques will be located where appropriate around the building
to promote the areas rich history. The Tracks history is also referenced in the name!
SUSTAINABILITY: Recycled products (wood, steel from the train line), solar panels and natural flora
will be included to make the establishment more eco-friendly, with at least 40% of the overall
energy consumption coming from these solar panels. Also, we will not be cutting down any more
trees to make room for our establishment, and we will be building upward instead of outward so
that we dont waste any room.
The Tracks will be located on the historic Rail Corridor train lines behind Federation Square. There is
currently a competition which is searching for the most suitable establishment to build on this
particular piece of land, and they say that the cost of decking over the rail lines will cost millions of
dollars, but it is all government funded. With all of the building supplies, solar panels and
construction fares, The Tracks will cost approximately an additional three million dollars, but if you
think about it, each week approximately $30,000 is made in rent to contribute to the funding which
means that it would only take two years to start making considerable profit (and these numbers
dont even included the rent of shops!)
The Tracks will assist Melbourne in becoming a responsible global citizen by bringing a sense of
community to a city which is becoming more and more money minded - it is letting our valued
liveability and rich history slip away, which is what we are trying to stop. Our plan will hopefully
bring back the communal feel that Melbourne had previously acquired, and will continue to build a
city which deserves the title, The Worlds Most Liveable City.
Thanks for listening

Julie
Bronte
Reina
All