By Laura Michell
Plans for the Mernda Town Centre have finally been approved.
Whittlesea council approved a planning permit for the 26.4-hectare town centre on the corner of Plenty and Bridge Inn roads last week, paving the way for Woolworths to start construction.
A decision on the town centre was delayed at three previous council meetings because of quorum difficulties.
Woolworths has owned the town centre site since 2008, and first submitted a development application to the council in 2014. A development plan for the centre was finally approved in November last year.
Under the planning permit approved by the council, the town centre will be developed in stages and will feature two supermarkets, 10 specialty retail stores, a bottle shop, four food and drink premises, two mini major shops, a gym and a medical office.
Cr Emilia Lisa Sterjova said the approval of the town centre was fantastic news for the community.
“What our residents are continually facing is having to travel on the outskirts of our municipality to access facilities,” she said.
“Our Mernda residents and those in surrounding suburbs will finally have the facilities that they have been waiting quite some time for.”
Future stages of the town centre will include high density housing.
