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Waverley Road Shopping Centre Precinct
Waverley Road MALVERN EAST, Stonnington City

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Statement of Significance

The Waverley Road shopping centre is of regional significance as a representative, largley intact commercial shopping precinct focused on the end of a tram line. Its development is illustrative of the interdependence of public transport and suburban development as part of Melbourne's development, especially in the late Federation and interwar periods. The nexus between tram, shopping precinct and dormitory subrub was clearly of significance to the development of surrounding area. The high proportion of original and early shopfronts found in the extant building stock greatly enhances that significance.
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    • Physical Description 1

      Waverley Road Shopping Centre Precinct - Physical Description 1

      The Waverley Road shopping precinct is located immediately west of the intersection of Waverley and Darling Roads in East Malvern. The area under consideration comprises approximately forty snops which occupy a busy, inner suburban site.

      The shopping precinct is located at the intersection of two, busy arterial roads, with shops clustered around the terminus of the East Malvern tram line. This section of Waverley Road is surfaced in bitumen with modem, concrete footpaths and kerbs although early, bluestone gutters have been retained in some locations. With the exception of a handful of decorative shrubs, the shopping frontage is devoid of landscaping and dense with roadside furniture such as poles for traffic lights, signage and lighting. Power and telephone lines are located overhead.

      The building stock exclusively comprises small retail outlets of one or two storeys. The majority of the buildings date from the period between the wars and generally develop the familiar theme of a red brick building with a tiled, hipped roof concealed behind a rendered parapet. The group currently exists in a somewhat altered state through modifications to the early built fabric and through the introduction of new buildings to the group, most notably, nos 275 and 280-282 Waverley Road. However early features dominate. Some buildings feature elaborately modelled parapets, (330-332, 268, 277-281 and 311 Waverley Road) or decorative render (297-299 Waverley Road) while others are distinguished by polychrome brickwork (295 Waverley Road). Unusually, many of the shops have retained their recessed entries and a small number have early metal shopfronts in place (287, 299 and 309 Waverley Road) or pressed metal linings to their verandahs (272, 324, and 297-299 Waverley Road).

      Local Historical Themes

      Waverley Road Shopping Centre Precinct - Local Historical Themes

      7.1 Serving local communities

      4.5 Tramways

      Heritage Study and Grading

      Heritage Study and Grading

      Stonnington - City of Stonnington Heritage Overlay Report (Stages 1-5) 1998

      Author: Bryce Raworth P/L
      Year: 1998
      Grading: Various

Public contributions

Note: Developments may span multiple time periods
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