Bayswater: Knox suburb suffering from ageing infrastructure and stacks of shop closures

Bayswater could be a thriving outer east hub, but instead it is stuck in a time warp with ancient buildings and scores of empty shops.

Bayswater's Station St has struggled for foot traffic since the revamped railway station opened. Picture: Kiel Egging.

It’s always tough to write about the state of your run-down neighbourhood.

But Bayswater, a suburb which appeared to have put its grimy past behind it, is starting to flatline again.

As a resident for more than two years now, I’ve enjoyed Bayswater’s status of being a quiet, not-too-overdeveloped suburb with the basic amenities nearby, and major shopping centres within a 15-minute drive.

You could think of it as a younger cousin to Croydon – a village-style atmosphere, a few decent eateries boasting various cuisines, a huge park with a revamped playground, and good transport links.

Unfortunately, its shopping scene and the atmosphere in the heart of town is another story.

Scores of empty shops are visible along its three main strips — Mountain Highway, Station St and High St — and some have been there before COVID-19 hit as well.

The casualty list is damning: there’s two empty bank branches, four failed cafes, and this week, the longstanding FJ’s hardware store announced it was shutting up shop after 20 years.

Two bank branches and a real estate office have closed on Mountain Highway in Bayswater. Picture: Kiel Egging.

At the Mountain High Shopping Centre, there’s an abandoned gym up top, the former Dimmeys store below, and at least five other empty tenancies.

The centre is set to have a major $15 million revamp soon — and it can’t come soon enough.

Because apart from having three major supermarkets a short walk from each other, and the SPC factory outlets store, Bayswater is seriously lacking any major drawcards to make people want to stop and visit.

Part of that is due to its eclectic and inconsistent mix of retailers, and the run-down, tired buildings they are in, which could rival a small country town.

It feels like you’re walking through a town that’s stuck 20 years in past.

There’s no street art murals, pop-up activations or spaces being used for community activities to draw people in and get engaged.

A giant statue, dubbed ‘aeroplane child’ was plonked outside the revamped station, but its hardly something you’d want to stop and get a selfie with for Instagram.

The aeroplane child statue outside Bayswater railway station.

And what’s even worse is the redesigned station, the most modern piece of infrastructure in town, has supposedly contributed to the tumbleweeds blowing along Station St.

Retailers have told me that moving the station entrance has killed off the foot traffic which used to frequent the strip, with most commuters heading straight to the giant carpark.

With the exception of the barber shop and the post office, there’s hardly any customers swinging by during the day.

Bayswater's Station Street has struggled for foot traffic since the revamped railway station opened. Picture: Kiel Egging.

Two new outdoor dining spaces have been created outside Junior Tan and a rebranded Asian cafe, but I’m yet to see them attract a crowd.

Bayswater’s charm problems don’t just centre around the main shopping precinct.

The Knox Community Arts Centre is severely under-utilised and needs a revamp, while the Bayswater Hotel next door has no live music or entertainment.

The council recently trialled a drive-in cinema at the arts centre’s carpark, and if it was to become a permanent offering, it would be a perfect niche product to bring some old-school fun back to the outer east.

It also did consultation last year for reviving the Macauley Place laneway – which would be a perfect spot to close off and have a community laneway market or some rotating food trucks.

Bayswater really has the potential to be a gem in Knox and the rest of the outer east.

But until some serious money is pumped into modernising its shops and streetscapes, it is going to remain stuck in the past, more retailers will leave, and that potential will be left unfulfilled.