An independent survey has revealed what many Werribee CBD shoppers and traders already know: the struggle to find a carpark space is stopping people from coming to the city centre more often
Customer research commissioned by Wyndham council and conducted by Metropolis Research found that a lack of parking was a deterrent for 31 per cent of respondents, with almost half (49 per cent) rating parking in the area as “very poor”.
A preference for shopping elsewhere (23 per cent) and the city centre not having the kind of shops the shopper was after (15.4 per cent) were the other main deterrents.
The survey also found:
• 49 per cent of respondents went to Werribee’s CBD for dining out and entertainment, while 27.5 per cent preferred Pacific Werribee.
• Respondents rated all aspects of the city centre as good or very good, with the exception of parking and public toilets.
• Two-thirds of respondents visited Werribee’s CBD several times a week.
• Only 2.5 per cent listed safety concerns as a deterrent from visiting the city centre.
Wyndham Business and Tourism Association president Nick Christou said he was unsurprised that a lack of parking was seen as an impediment for Werribee CBD shoppers, but he was otherwise pleased with the results.
“With 84 per cent of people coming by car … it really highlights how big an issue parking is,” Mr Christou said.
“I don’t think there was anything that stood out that we didn’t know already, but from the point of view of where the opportunities are – if you look at where [in Wyndham] people shop and for what goods, it highlights that the Werribee city centre has a lot to offer.
“I think the information is encouraging and I think we’re certainly on the right path.
“People prefer to dine out in [the Werribee CBD] area than at Pacific Werribee [in Hoppers Crossing], and they have a dedicated dining precinct, and we have a disjointed dining precinct.”
Mayor Adele Hegedich said the research contradicted some negative perceptions about Werribee’s main shopping district.
“The Werribee city centre is sometimes portrayed as being potentially unsafe, but the findings of this research have contradicted that rhetoric,” she said.
“Personal safety concerns were found to be the least significant barrier to people visiting the city centre.”
The findings come the same week in which building began on the long-awaited Cherry Street carpark, which will be built over two stages – 108 spaces during stage one and 47 during stage two – on the former Werribee Hyundai site and two adjoining sites.
The carpark is expected to be completed by mid-June.
