Craigieburn is set to become a ‘one-stop shop’ for all things retail, with plans under way for a large lifestyle centre opposite Craigieburn Central.
A 23,000 square-metre centre – Craigieburn Junction – will feature about 15 large format retailers, as well as medical and entertainment businesses, at 420 Craigieburn Road.
Plans also show two freestanding sites suitable for a service station or fast food outlet, as well as more than 600 parking spaces.
Developer Oreana Group is behind the project, which is expected to be completed in late 2017.
Plans have already been approved by Hume council.
Burgess Rawson leasing director David Mark, who is acting on behalf of the developer, said the centre would feature furniture, electrical, bedding and auto stores typically found in homemaker centres.
He said a number of national retailers had already signed up.
Mr Mark said Craigieburn Junction would be the “largest and most prominent” retail and lifestyle centre in Melbourne’s north, predicting it would become a “destination” that would create a large regional town centre at Craigieburn.
“Situated side-by-side with Craigieburn Central, it becomes a one-stop-shop for all things retail,” he said.
“It will cement the area as a retail precinct.”
Mr Mark said while the development was only presented to the market earlier this month, the responses from retailers had been exceptional.
He said feedback from the community suggested that residents were also excited by the plans.
Many residents have already taken to social media to express their support for the project and to call for auto and electrical stores to be included, as well as office space.
Mr Mark said that Craigieburn was the ideal area for such a development, given that it was one of the fastest growing suburbs in the country.
He said Craigieburn Junction would be in a centralised area that could be accessed by Craigieburn Road and Aitken Boulevard and was close to the Hume Highway and Hume Freeway.
“This is a growing area that can support this level of development.
“Hume is putting a lot of focus on this area,” Mr Mark said. “It is an exciting proposal.”
