IT’S official: Wyndham is the fastest-growing municipality in Australia, with a staggering 12,230 people arriving over the 12 months to June last year.
Latest Australian Bureau of Statistics data reveals Wyndham’s population recorded a jump of almost 8per cent, from 156,332 to 168,552.
Other municipalities on Melbourne’s fringe, including Cardinia, Melton and Whittlesea, were also among the six fastest-growing parts of Australia.
The population boom in the city’s growth areas is part of a wider trend. Melbourne had the largest growth of all capital cities, increasing by 66,900 people in the year, almost 1300 people a week.
Within Wyndham, the fastest-growing part is Point Cook, where estates like Saltwater Coast are housing thousands of new residents.
Former Canberra couple John and Erin Wilkinson, who bought a $500,000 four-bedroom home in Saltwater Coast in 2009, said the lifestyle had attracted scores of young families.
“It’s Melbourne without being in the hustle and bustle, and you can still see the city across the water,” Mr Wilkinson said.
“In our estate itself, we’ve got a gym, tennis courts, cafe – it’s a very family-oriented area, so there a lot of likeness to your neighbours, and we all easily become friends.”
But for other residents, Wyndham’s population explosion has fuelled frustrations about growth outstripping infrastructure and services, adding to the congestion on roads, overcrowding on public transport and waiting times in hospital emergency wards.
Mayor Kim McAliney said being the fastest-growing part of the country was not something she wore as a “badge of honour”. “We’re building new suburbs nearly every year in our municipality, and when you’ve got that, the lag that comes with it on infrastructure gets more challenging every year,” she said.
Cr McAliney said state government planning was geared towards promoting affordable housing in growth areas, but it wasn’t investing in the infrastructure that needed to follow.”We can’t continue to keep growing at this pace without a major investment of funds into the city.
We want communities that are liveable communities, not just houses lined up one by one.”
