Main atrium of Westfield Bay City.

Westfield Bay City is a shopping centre located in Geelong, Victoria (Australia) opened in 1988. It was formerly known as Bay City Plaza before being taken over by The Westfield Group in 2003. Westfield Bay City is located on the northern side of Malop St opposite the Market Square shopping complex, and is bounded by Moorabool, Yarra, and Gheringhap Streets. The centre is currently undergoing an refurbishment, as well as an expansion over Yarra Street via a controversial flyover. Moorabool St, Geelongs main street, during Christmas. ... The Westfield Group is a multinational company that owns shopping centres in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Shops

Shops inside Geelong's Westfield Bay City.

• Myer department store.
• Target department store.
• Coles supermarket.
• Food court.
• Approximately 75 speciality stores.

Plaque marking opening of Bay City Plaza.

Myer Emporium. ... The interior of a typical Macys department store. ... Target Australia Pty Ltd is an Australian company that operates over 350 Target department stores in its chain. ... Coles Supermarkets is an Australian supermarket chain owned by Coles Group. ... Food court at the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City in Arlington, Virginia. ...

History

The site of Westfield Bay City has seen many uses before the construction of the shopping centre. Corio Street once ran east west through the site, as well as the north-south Blakiston Street (that ran between Malop and Corio Streets) and Macks Lane (that ran from Corio Street to Brougham Street).

The southern frontage to Malop Street was a retail area from at least the 1850s. Among the longest lasting stores was that owned by Morris Jacobs, which remained until 1950s when it was purchased by Myer Emporium Limited. The store was rebuilt in 1952, and in August 1953 changed it's name to Myer. The Myer store was incorporated into the new development. Myer Emporium. ...

Melbourne Electric Supply Company Building.

The corner of Brougham and Yarra Streets was occupied by the Melbourne Electric Light and Traction Company office building, and power station, which dated back to 1901. A tram depot was built to the south when trams commenced operation in Geelong in 1912. The tram depot closed in 1956 along with the tram network. The power station closed in the 1960s when replaced by a new plant at North Geelong. Oil power plant in Iraq A power station (also referred to as generating station or power plant) is a facility for the generation of electric power. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... A Depot is usually a centralised store or operating base for logistical use by commercial or governmental bodies. ... North Geelong is a suburb of Geelong in the Australian state of Victoria. ...

Blakiston's Building and car park entry.

The next building to the west was occupied by the offices of Geelong transport company Blakiston's and Co. Next door was the Geelong Club clubrooms which were opened in 1889. The building remains today.

The corner of Brougham and Moorabool Streets was occupied by the Strachan Murray and Shannon woolstores. This woolstore dated back to the 1940s, and was extended eastwards towards the Geelong Club building in 1952 when the adjacent Mack's Hotel was purchased and demolished.

Initial Proposals

The 1980s saw the first of many urban renewal proposals floated for the area. The Geelong Regional Commission on November 6, 1981 released a plan that would see a see a massive shopping centre extend from Little Malop Street though to the waterfront.^[1] This proposal did not proceed, but a scaled down version of the plans be seen in the Market Square Shopping Centre and Bay City Plaza developments that did proceed. 1999 photograph looking northeast on Chicagos now demolished Cabrini-Green housing project, one of many urban renewal efforts. ...

As 'Bay City Plaza'

Construction of Bay City Plaza commenced in the mid 1980s. Corio and Blakiston Streets were closed, as was Macks Lane. The former power station was totally demolished, with the Strachan woolstores, Blakistons's offices and tram depot stripped internally, with only the facades reused. The Myer store remained, albeit with minor modifications and an altered facades along Malop Street.

The centre was opened by then Victorian State Premier John Cain on April 15th 1988. The centre was under the ownership of the Perron Group. Little change occurred to the centre itself until 1993 when a minor refurbishment occurred. John Cain John Cain (born 26 April 1931), Australian politician, was Labor Premier of the state of Victoria from 1982 to 1990. ... Year 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar). ...

An additional multi story carpark was built by the Perron Group in the late 1990s. Known as the "Malop Street Carpark", it was located between Malop Street and Corio Street to the east of the existing shopping centre, on the site of a former council carpark. The site is now part of the current expansion works to the centre. Parking lot is the American English term that refers to a cleared area that is more or less level and is intended for parking vehicles. ...

Sale

On June 30 2003 the Perron Group sold a 50% share of Bay City Plaza to the The Westfield Group for $72 million. ^[2] The renaming of the centre followed soon after. The Westfield Group is a multinational company that owns shopping centres in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. ...

Redevelopment

The early 2000s saw proposals floated for the expansion of the shopping centre, utilising a flyover over Yarra Street, but this has met a negative response from the community.

Construction at Westfield Bay City, looking north-east from Market Square.

The development was given approval on 21 June 2006^[3] construction commenced early in 2007. Big W will be the key tenant of the Yarra Street section of Westfield Bay City. is the 172nd day of the year (173rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... Big W is the second largest discount department store in Australia, with over 120 stores located nationwide. ...

Construction of this extension started in February 2007 and will continue for up to 18 months. Projected completion is for mid 2008. Construction work has resulted in major closures to various parts of the centre. A number of smaller shops both the ground and first floors have been closed, along with the Coles supermarket and the eastern pedestrian entry from Yarra Street. Part of the main multi-level carpark has been closed, as well as the Yarra Street access ramp and the Malop Street Carpark. Coles Supermarkets is an Australian supermarket chain owned by Coles Group. ... Exterior of a typical British supermarket (a Tesco Extra) Exterior of typical North American supermarket (a Safeway) This Flagship Randalls store in Houston, Texas is an example of an upscale supermarket. ...

References

• Beg, Peter. (1990). Geelong - The First 150 Years. Globe Press. ISBN 0-9592863-5-7

Footnotes

1. ^ "Special Edition - "Geelong - City By The Bay"", Geelong Advertiser, November 6 1981
2. ^ WESTFIELD TRUST AND PERRON GROUP ANNOUNCE JOINT VENTURE FOR BAY CITY PLAZA, GEELONG. Retrieved on 2007-7-1.
3. ^ Thompson v Gtr Geelong CC (2006) VCAT 1089, Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal decision

The Geelong Advertiser is a newspaper in Geelong, Victoria (Australia). ... The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal is an government agency in the state of Victoria, Australia. ...

External links

• Shopping Centre homepage