Gentrification of West End
A photo story about a multicultural suburb in Brisbane.
The Kurilpa Peninsula and the West End suburb in Brisbane have experienced waves of change for two hundred years and more.
Yet much of its core spirit and sense of place, diversity and community remains in rich layers of history.
One relic of the past, which divided, rather than embraced cultures, still exists in the name Boundary Street.
Listen to a brief history of boundary street.
https://soundcloud.com/navin-samuel-regi/a-brief-history-of-boundary-st-west-end
The photo-story documents the current wave of change scheduled for West End.
The Absoe site is a 2.5 hectare plot of land which accommodated the popular West End street markets and two heritage-listed buildings — the original Peter’s Ice Cream factory and a 1920s brick warehouse.
The site has been sold to a Sydney based developer for $42 million, with plans to build high-rise apartment buildings and a large public car-park in the area.
Johnny Tabet, the proprietor of Charlie Liz’s fruit shop, which is a small family run business that has been trading since 1986, says that development is good but it is not going to get any better for small businesses in the area.
According to him, last year 7–8 small businesses in West End closed down because of the street markets which have popped up in and around the suburb. He says that while he pays high rent and other costs including utilities and taxes, the small shops at the markets barely pay anything. He estimates that he pays about $2000 a month whereas the shops in the markets pay much lesser.
Hellenic house — once an iconic building, was demolished to construct high-rise apartments.
This Greek landmark was perched on high ground on Russel street. With its historic temple facade, it was a space where people of all generations converged to share stories, play board games, have good food or to enjoy a pleasant evening.
Plans to redevelop the site into apartment buildings was a major blow for the Greek community and its many regular visitors who had to give up their favorite cultural hub.
Tom and John’s Buffalo Hot Wings is a modest fastfood joint tucked away in a refurbished shipping container at the West end street markets.
John Glann, the manager, says he feels bad West end is going to lose it’s culture but he’s happy Brisbane is growing.
“If it’s upto me, I’de leave it the way it is. So enjoy it while it lasts.”
As the race to develop the Kurilpa region gathers pace, the authenticity and the architectural layout of little side streets such as Paris street, Besant street and Cambridge street is slowly disappearing.
Another demographic that have felt the effects of gentrification are buskers. West End, used to be considered as one of the more tolerant suburbs in Brisbane where buskers were free to set up their gear anywhere. But as the suburb evolves into a sleeker neighborhood, the buskers and the indigent are being pushed further away.
Long term residents like Robin Taubenfeld are apprehensive about the loss of the unique sub-culture and community associated to West End. Local groups are banding together to preserve what’s left of it and to voice their concerns to the Queensland state government.
According to Ms Taubenfeld a lot is being sacrificed for corporate interests.
“Developments must be coupled with developments that help the community. Currently there’s a push to develop this area without prioritizing community development.”
Shays Shoes, a 114 years old store which is owned and operated by a third generation of Shays, Wayne Shay, says the development in the region might compliment their business.
According to him since there aren’t many shoe stores in the area, his business hasn’t been affected much and with development he’s expecting more people to stop by his store.
With monolithic developers competing to grab a chunk of West end for their ambitious projects and concerned residents advocating for more focus on community development, the peninsula is divided by opinion.
Disappearance of low-cost housing, lack of interest in social development, insufficient green spaces, overpopulated schools, traffic congestion and environmental degradation are some of the concerns that are pertinent in the community.
By the year 2030, West End — South Brisbane peninsula is expected to absorb 22 per cent of Brisbane’s growth, yet Brisbane City Council’s billion dollar riverfront development plan, Draft Kurilpa Master Plan, fails to allocate any additional resources for educational institutions, green spaces, low cost housing or other community development projects in the area.
West End peninsula which has a current population of 11,000 households is planned to double to 25,000 households.
When the current state government came into power a shimmer of hope was shared by many. But since no new resolutions have been declared, the West end community remains skeptical.
