The City of Boroondara is seeking final community feedback on its draft plan to revitalise Glenferrie Road.
The council is committed to widening footpaths in a few sections of Glenferrie Road (between Manningtree Road and Barkers Road), with green and shady places, trees to make the street welcoming and more comfortable, seating spaces and improved footpath surfaces.
But going further confronts the challenge of space.
"Glenferrie Road is currently dominated by vehicles and its footpaths are cramped,” Boroondara says on its consultation page.
"To widen the footpaths and make improvements, we need to use some of the space that is currently designated as on-road parking spaces.
"Of the 180 parking spaces along Glenferrie Road, between 30 to 40 will become new public spaces for people. We also anticipate that, at later date, the Victorian Government will remove an additional 40 to 50 car parking spaces for tram stop upgrades.”
It’s a paradox thwarts the planners of most of our recognised historic shopping streets: shoppers prefer streets with few cars while traders demand all the car parking they can squeeze in.
Trams, vans, people, parking, bikes, cars: they can’t all fit.
The council’s Revitalising Glenferrie: draft Place Plan follows consultation in late 2021. New options are open for public comment until 5pm, Friday 2 May.
The new consultation asks the community how it wants the relocation of parking to be handled, including the option of multi-deck parking in nearby Park Street.
Removing car parking, even with wider footpaths, should provide opportunities for improving the problematic bike infrastructure in the street, especially if the accessible trams stops are designed with skill.
Details of how the bike facilities might function are yet to be provided, but the council says “a continuous and safe bike lane along the full length of Glenferrie Road will be explored".