Westfield Burwood Redevelopment (2000)

Source: Westfield. 2000. "Westfield Burwood Grand Opening Thursday 17 August" (Advertisement). The Inner Western Suburbs Courier, August 14: 1. 

Did you know that Westfield Burwood is the only Westfield Shopping Centre to have been completely demolished and rebuilt as part of a redevelopment?

Source: Anon. 2000. "Designed for the new millennium". The Inner Western Suburbs Courier, August 14: 21.

This month is 25 years since the redeveloped complex opened to shoppers. The size of the centre was doubled to 62 000sq/m and contained 220 stores. Anchor tenants from the original complex returned, including Grace Bros and Coles. Target, which traded on a separate site in Victoria Street, moved into the complex and its former site was incorporated into Westfield, becoming home to a new 12-screen Greater Union (now Event Cinemas) complex. 

 

Source: Westfield. 2000. "It's easier to get here (but even harder to resist)." (Advertisement). The Inner Western Suburbs Courier, August 14: 155. 

Woolworths and Kmart opened new stores for the first time. The official opening was on August 17, 2000, by swimming legend Dawn Fraser, an Inner West local herself.

According to The Inner Western Suburbs Courier,  an estimated 90,000 flocked to the centre for the first day of trading.

Source: Anon. 2000. "Huge crowd flocks to Westfield". The Inner Western Suburbs Courier, August 21: 1.

Grace Bros was branded as Myer in 2004, before closing in 2007 and was replaced by David Jones. In 2024, a refurbishment saw David Jones reduce its trading space from three floors to two floors. The space on level 2 is now occupied by Aldi, JB Hifi, Nike and Rebel Sport. 

These advertisements were published in The Inner Western Suburbs Courier in its editions throughout August 2000.

Coles

 Woolworths 

 Kmart

Dymocks

 

Grace Bros published a special advertising supplement on August 17, 2000, in The Daily Telegraph. I share three of those pages with you.

Entry of interest

MILESTONE: Westfield Burwood opens (1966)

NEVER BUILT SYDNEY: Early Westfield Hurstville Scheme (1975)

Source: Anon. 1975. "Big New Shopping Complex". The St George and Sutherland Shire Leader, December 3: 3. 

Westfield Hurstville was opened in 1978. At the time of opening, it had 120 stores anchored by Waltons, Coles and Nock & Kirbys. It was confined to a block bound by Park Road, Cross Street and Humphreys Lane before being extended over Park Road in 1989/1990.

Before the expansion at the end of the 1980s it also had the Snowy Hill Park, open to the public at all hours of the day. 

In 1975, an ambitious proposal was lodged with Hurstville Council (now Georges River Council), which envisioned an even larger park spread on its roof (equivalent to a town square) and an office building, which had become standard with any Westfield development at the time. Three levels of retail would be provided. 

Jake Harproff had recently posted scanned images from a document to the Old Shops Australia Facebook Group.

The cross sections from three different angles gives one the perspective of the layout, which would differ significantly from what would be built within the original section of the centre. 

• Snowy Hill Park would be built atop a three-level car park located at the Humphreys Lane end, with footbridges connecting the centre to Forest Road. It would act as a town centre for central Hurstville.
• An office block with three levels of office space to be built above the rooftop car park. This component was scrapped.
• Three levels of shops, but would become two levels when the design was modified to the eventual original layout, and the retail area was extended down to Humphreys Lane, while Snowy Hill Park was reduced.
• As originally planned, the department store (Waltons) would be located towards the Park Street end. Coles would be located on level 1 (and has been since opening in 1978). 
• Provision of space for a discount department store (didn't eventuate in 1978).

Would this have affected its subsequent expansion over Park Road to encompass the block bounded by The Avenue, Cross Street, Park Road and Humphreys Lane in 1989-1990? The layout of that block in its current form would have been possible, but the famous sloping of shops in the complex (which allows shoppers to use the centre without using stairs or escalators) would not have occurred. Escalators and stairs would have been used to move up or down each floor. It's likely, though, that the current centre may have fewer stores than it has in its current layout.

SYDNEY RETAILING: More Midnight Shopping Clippings (1987 & 1989)

After my entry on the Pitt Street Mall hosting the first Midnight trade evening in September 1987, I found another two clippings relating to another two instances where retailers could trade until midnight. In one instance, one retailer decided to begin the day's trade at midnight.

Christmas 1987 - Kmart

Source: Coren, D. 1987. "Crowds Flock to Shop Late". The Daily Mirror, December 23: 2. 

On 23 December 1987, Kmart opened stores at Blacktown, Hornsby and Merrylands at midnight as part of extended Christmas trading and was a "great success" according to Blacktown store supervisor Jim O'Reilly. 

Midnight trading was allowed on the thursday before Christmas in 1988 (22 December 1988). Below is a newspaper advertisement for Bankstown Square as published in The St George and Sutherland Shire Leader on 20 December 1988.

Mothers Day 1989

 

Source: Knowsley, J. 1989. "Traders Clash On Midnight Opening". The Daily Mirror, May 12: 16-17.

Retailers were allowed to trade until midnight on Thursday 11 May 1989. Westfield decided to keep its centres open until midnight. Westfield claimed it was successful, but there were some that felt it did not work out and the anticipated extra trade did not eventuate. 

Christmas 1989

Westfield repeated the extra late trading on the last Thursday before Christmas in 1989 with a midnight close on 21 December. 

Source: Westfield. 1989. "Open Today and Every Day until Christmas (Advertisement)." The Sunday Telegraph, December 17: 149. 

Peter Fitzsimons also wrote a feature on the extended late trade at the Grace Bros City Store for The Sydney Morning Herald. This was featured in a previous entry focusing on Christmas in 1989.

Source: Fitzsimons, P. "To some, night is the time for shopping. " The Sydney Morning Herald, December 23: 2. 

Related Entries

• Christmas Snapshot: 1989
• Sydney Retailing: Midnight Shopping (1987)

MILESTONE: Westfield Liverpool turns 50 - Opening (1972)

 

Yesterday (28 August), Westfield Liverpool turns 50. Last week, I shared newspaper articles associated with the unveiling of plans by Westfield and Grace Bros to build the shopping centre in the Liverpool CBD. Click here to view that entry.

As promised, I will focus on the opening which occurred fifty years ago. The centre was opened by NSW Premier Sir Robert Askin. 

Source: Anon. 1972. "The West Gets Its Westfield". The Daily Mirror, August 29: 54.

Source: Anon. 1972. "The Birth of a Store". The Daily Mirror, August 28:30.

Construction took less than 12 months. Grace Bros was the anchor tenant with 20 000 square feet of space along with Target and fifty five shops.

Below is a Grace Bros Advertisement as published in The Daily Mirror on 28 August 1972. It was a true one-stop shop. Fifty years later, Grace Bros (now Myer) no longer sells pets, liquor or groceries or even a bite to eat.

   

 

 Source: Anon. 1972. "From the Corners of the World". The Daily Mirror, August 28: 30. 

 A major expansion in the 1990's saw the centre expand westwards absorbing Macquarie and Northumberland Streets to create a "superblock". Currently the centre has over 320 retailers, a six-fold increase since 1972. Event Cinemas, BigW, Kmart, Coles, Woolworths and JB Hi-fi are also major tenants. 

Plans were proposed in 2019 for an eight level office building along with additional retail space, entertainment and dining precinct. Construction has yet to commence.

Related Entry

MILESTONE: Westfield Liverpool turns 50 - Plans are unveiled (1969)

MILESTONE: Westfield Liverpool turns 50 - Plans are unveiled (1969)

Full citation below.

Next Sunday, (28 August) will be the 50th Anniversary of the opening of Westfield Liverpool in 1972. To mark the anniversary, I have organised a two part series focusing on the unveiling of plans in 1969 and sharing some material that was published in newspapers from its opening in 1972.

Source: Anon. 1969. "$8 1/2 Million Shopping Centre". The Daily Telegraph, December 9: page unknown. 

This week, I will focus on the unveiling of plans from 1969. Grace Bros announced that it would anchor the new Westfield Shopping Centre that was to encompass nearly one block, bounded by Macquarie Street (Hume Highway), Campbell Street, George Street and Elizabeth Street. Apart from Grace Bros, the initial plan called for a smaller sized department store and fifty shops.

Plans were lodged by Westfield with Liverpool Council on 8 December 1969. 

Source: Anon. 1969. "New $8.5m Shopping Centre". The Sydney Morning Herald, December 9: 9.

Grace Bros indicated that the 20 000 square feet of space would be as large as its Bondi Junction store and provided an opportunity for growth. It would not impinge on the trading area of its Parramatta and Roselands stores as Liverpool was located "on the fringes" of both trading areas. 

1964: Westfield Burwood Plans released

Full Citation Below

In 2016, I published an entry on the opening of Westfield Burwood in 1966. This year, the complex will turn 55.  Below is a clipping from The Daily Telegraph in July 1964 relating to the announcement of plans by Westfield to construct the centre. One eventual tenant (Mark Foys) was reported to have announced that they would open a store in the new centre. 

Source. Anon. 1964. "£2m. Plan for Burwood". The Daily Telegraph, July 1:9. 

This was not the final scheme. In June 1965, The Sydney Morning Herald reported that the planned shopping centre had enlarged to encompass more of the block, which would be the built design. Additional retail space was added along with an office block facing Burwood Road.  

Source: Anon. 1965. "Myer's Gets Store Site Sought by Mark Foy's". The Sydney Morning Herald, June 17: 1. 

Despite three years of negotiations, Mark Foys was unsuccessful to act as the anchor for the new centre. Farmers (owned by Myer) was successful in securing the lease for 100 000 square feet of space (up from 80 000 square feet in the previous scheme). Mark Foys had to settle for a smaller space within the centre. 

Related:

MILESTONE: Westfield Burwood opens (1966)

Property Advert of the Week: St Andrews Tower, Raleigh Park (1994)

Below is an advertisement for St Andrews Tower which is part of the Raleigh Park complex at Kensington.

Source: Mirvac & Westfield. 1994. "St Andrews at Raleigh Park" (Advertisement). The Sydney Morning Herald, May 12, 48.

EVOLUTION OF WESTFIELD MIRANDA: Westfield Miranda extensions (1984-1985)

The success of Westfield Miranda during the 1970's and increasing population growth across the Sutherland Shire led to Westfield deciding to embark on another expansion.

Farmers would be rebranded as Myer in 1976

In 1982, plans for extensions were rejected by Sutherland Council. The scheme proposed expansion over the railway line and into Karimbla Road.

During the same year, Myer purchased Grace Bros. In early 1983, Myer made the decision to withdraw from NSW citing poor sales and focus on growing the Grace Bros brand across the state.

Source: Anon. 1983. "New jobs for Miranda staff". The St George and Sutherland Shire Leader, February 16: 3.

The majority of Myer stores were converted to Grace Bros. Some stores were closed altogether e.g. Gordon.

As Grace Bros was already a tenant in Westfield Miranda, it was decided that Myer would vacate the space.

This allowed Westfield to subdivide the space once occupied by the store. You will notice that some of that layout still remains, even after redevelopment and upgrades in 2014.

Source: Anon. 1983. "Myer Miranda Fair to be redeveloped". The St George and Sutherland Shire Leader, May 11: 38.

In mid 1983, Harvey Norman moved into what was the top floor of Farmers/Myer and would remain there for a decade before moving to Caringbah.

The extensions and upgrades were completed in three stages - April 1984, August 1984 and March 1985.

Upon completion, Big W had moved in. Woolworths moved from level 2 to level 3. Best and Less and Franklins opened stores. Parking facilities were also expanded to extend over Wandella Road onto land behind Miranda Public School. The expansion of the carpark caused controversy.

The number of shops had doubled again - 160 retailers under the one roof.

One departure was the Miranda branch of Sutherland Library, moving to its current site in Wandella Road.

Below are some scans from The St George and Sutherland Shire Leader from 1984 and 1985 to promote the upgrades and selected advertisements.

April 1984 - Stage 1

August 1984 - Stage 2

March 1985 - Stage 3