Box Hill Central development: 50-storey tower, new town square

A “rundown and tired” area of Box Hill is set to get a multimillion-dollar makeover, but not everyone is happy about the plans.

Vicinity Centres has a 10-year transformation project to revitalise the heart of Box Hill.

A major plan to redevelop the heart of Box Hill is afoot, with more towers planned for the high density suburban CBD.

And while the community is being invited to have its say, some think the plans are a foregone conclusion.

Planning permit application signs have gone up advertising the Box Hill Central shopping centre owners’ plan for 17-21 Market St, including two high rise buildings, reaching 27-28 storeys and 50-51 storeys and a reduction in carparking requirements.

Vicinity Centres revealed its $683 million redevelopment plan to revitalise the Box Hill CBD last May, including Box Hill Central.

It includes 3350sq m of new public space featuring a town square, amphitheatre, extension of Main St and extension of Prospect St to link with Clisby Court and Whitehorse Rd; a 25-level commercial office building next to Box Hill train station; and a 50-storey tower featuring 366 apartments, office space and ground level retail trading onto a revitalised Main St.

Vicinity Centres says the commercial office and residential buildings will include car spaces for workers and residents, and the new public open spaces and the extension of Main St and Prospect St will provide greater access through Box Hill’s town centre for pedestrians, cyclists and cars.

A render of the new town square at Box Hill.

Vicinity Centres also has plans to redevelop Box Hill Central shopping centre, including working with new brands, and existing retailers who are looking to expand their current offer.

The travelators in the south precinct near Woolworths will soon be replaced and upgraded, in anticipation of future centre upgrade works.

“Our 10-year vision will transform the centre of Box Hill into a world-class precinct and thriving destination, with a bustling new town square supported by residential, commercial and retail developments for the community to enjoy work and play close to home,” Vicinity Centres said.

“The redevelopment proposal will revitalise the Box Hill CBD, attracting more workers, more residents and more businesses to one of Melbourne’s most exciting suburbs, providing opportunity for local business and creating jobs in the process.”

But a post on the I grew up in Box Hill Facebook page drew a huge reaction from residents, with many not happy with the redevelopment plan.

“Wow so different to the Box Hill I grew up in,” one reader said, while another labelled the suburb a “concrete jungle”.

Belinda Read, who runs the page, told Leader she was sick of seeing 50-storey buildings in Box Hill.

“I’d hate to live in the shadows of those places, but there’s nothing much we can do about it,” she said.

Ms Read said nine to 10-storey buildings would be much more appropriate for Box Hill.

“When the tax building went up I thought ‘My god what is that?’,” she said.

“I remember the council putting out a survey or questionnaire on what people thought about it before all of them (the high rises) went up.

“I thought about a nine-storey limit would have been a good height, you could get your development, have progress, but obviously no one gave a stuff about what people thought.

“I’d be interested to know what the occupancy rate is in all those (high rise) buildings.”

Meanwhile there are hopes the rundown Box Hill train station and bus interchange will also get a makeover as part of the upgrade plans for the area.

Public Transport Users Association’s Daniel Bowen said it would make a lot of sense to upgrade the station.

“With trains, buses and also trams nearby, this is already a busy interchange, and is set to become even busier when the connecting Suburban Rail Loop station opens in coming years,” Mr Bowen said.

“At present the station and the bus interchange are quite grimy, not easy to navigate, and not pleasant places to wait for your train or bus.

“Improvements to brighten it up, and improve access and capacity, would be very welcome.”

A State Government spokesperson said the Government was working to improve the public transport experience for passengers at the Box Hill Bus Interchange, and had already installed new lighting and upgraded the passenger information displays.

Whitehorse Council city development director Jeff Green said the application for the residential tower had received 15 submissions to date, while the application for the office development had received one submission.

“Officers continue to work through some of the outstanding matters for each of the applications, and are not yet in a position to put a time frame on a decision for any of the applications,” he said.

Submissions will be accepted up until a decision is made on the applications.

Have your say on the Whitehorse Council website or email feedback to [e-mail].