[+] Under the Bridge: Shaping a City’s Underused Spaces

Every weekday morning, children use a pedestrian bridge over a busy main road to get to school in one of Melbourne’s south-eastern suburbs. Under the bridge at the corner of Euston and Warrigal roads, Hughesdale, sits an empty lot. It is rarely empty for too long— cars pull in to park as parents drop kids off on the school run and to grab coffee from a neighbouring cafe. On occasion it has been used as a gathering spot for residents to talk to council or other government representatives. Though the space has found its own use over time and has not required development, many other such liminal and in-between spaces have. They are the hidden landscapes often on the edge of development. Ratio urban design and planning director Mathew Furness says there is much that can be done with such spaces but that a clear plan at a state level appears to be missing. “It’s hard to believe that I’m all alone in thinking that these spaces are a great development opportunity,” Furness says. ▲ The raised train line at Hughesdale Train Station in Melbourne ’ s south-east. “It’s not often planned out as part of other projects—it’s more opportunistic. “[London] had a much more proactive approach to it with its transport authority. “They were trying to exploit those spaces because they could generate rents or generate other income from them.” Opening spaces for the community Four blocks away at the other end of Hughesdale is a similar space. It was part of the Caulfield to Dandenong Level Crossing Removal Project—nine level crossings were removed and five new stations built. Level crossings were causing traffic congestion and, with the southern hemisphere’s largest mall, Chadstone Shopping Centre, and major commuter routes nearby, the decision was made to raise the railway line. Completed in June, 2018, Hughesdale’s train station sits above Poath Road. But a new issue was created—what to do with the 22.5ha of space created by the project? The answer was a series of parks, community spaces and a walking trail that follows an Indigenous pathway extending for several suburbs to Clayton. During the pandemic, it became a saving grace for many who walked the trail to meet others in their social bubble a few suburbs over. “They’re taking those opportunities to provide community facilities or amenities, which is a bit different too,” Furness says. Creating community and third spaces is often the aim with sites such as these, which often fall under the ownership of councils or state governments. Brisbane City Council this year transformed such a space into a community pickleball court. Partnering with Mirvac, Suncorp and M&amp;G Real Estate, it took $1.5 million and a year to revitalise a space at Roma and Turbot streets in the Heritage Lanes precinct into a shaded and fenced multi-court facility with seating, artwork and landscaping. “HL Court is something we are really proud of, delivering a unique community facility to the CBD in a space that was otherwise somewhat disused and aesthetically unappealing,” Mirvac Group general manager, commercial development, Simon Healy said at the facility’s opening in March. ▲ The pickleball court space created as part of the Turbot Street Underpass revitalisation project in Brisbane’s Heritage Lanes precinct. According to Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner, using spaces such as these is key to achieving strategic goals at a local government level. “Brisbane has an incredible outdoor lifestyle and we want to create more spaces to help residents stay active and healthy,” Schrinner says. “This hidden pocket that was previously boring concrete has been transformed into an active haven … for the community to enjoy.” Barriers to development This idea is not new nor is it confined to community purposes—in Melbourne, interesting uses for interesting spaces abound. Under the bridge supporting the railway lines between Flinders Street Station and Southern Cross Station, (the Flinders Street Viaduct, built in 1891), spaces were carved out for roads and bridge access across the Yarra. Over the years, other uses have cropped up including, briefly, a car impounding park for the City of Melbourne and a fish market. In the 1890s, bananas were stored underneath it leading to part of the walkways being named Banana Alley Vaults. Part of the Melbourne Aquarium, completed in 1999, is under the bridge at the western end of the CBD, at the corner of King and Flinders streets. A few blocks towards the eastern end of the CBD along Flinders Street are signs for gyms, shops and even a nightclub all in spaces built into the bridge, which was designed by railway engineer Frederick Esling. At City Road, South Melbourne, opposite the site for Gurner’s under-construction Madison Grand, is a lot under the M1 freeway overpass. Apart from supports for the overpass, the space is home to a fast-food outlet with frontages to three streets—and a confusing set of entrances and exits. ▲ The Banana Alley Vaults under the Flinders Street Viaduct. But, according to Furness, getting these spaces developed or used is not straightforward. “Often the first barrier is the ownership of those spaces and understanding who owns them and who controls them,” he says. “They are spaces created principally by transport infrastructure projects.” That means it is often crown or public land so one of the three tiers of government must determine what to do with the space. But look hard enough and such spaces are everywhere. Furness points out that Melbourne’s Federation Square was an attempt to create more space and revenue from airspace rights above the train lines and along its riverside edge, now home to a restaurant strip. Melbourne’s alleys and laneways, and the City of Melbourne’s Greenline project to revitalise the spaces along the Yarra River, are also in the same category. In Perth’s CBD, spaces between the Perth Art Gallery, Museum and the State Library were revamped to create community gardens, an amphitheatre space, a pond and space for communal gatherings and festivals. Redesigning Perth Train Station’s trainlines has opened up space to build Yagan Square and a new campus for Edith Cowan University, connecting the CBD to Northbridge. Transport infrastructure is a big part of these spaces simply because they were rarely designed with additional uses for incidental spaces in mind. “At the time when we built the West Gate freeway, or even earlier, such as the old railway lines in the inner city, we weren’t thinking in detail about how those spaces would be used,” Furness says. “It’s a good idea to try to find uses that activate them and make them safer, more attractive parts of the city.” You are currently experiencing The Urban Developer Plus (TUD+), our premium membership for property professionals. Click here to learn more.

[+] Under the Bridge: Shaping a City’s Underused Spaces

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