EDITION 2 SUMMER 2017

GO ST ALBANS IS AN INITIATIVE OF BRIMBANK CITY COUNCIL

brimbank.vic.gov.au

SUMMER EDITION 2024

Year of the Dragon

The St Albans Lunar Festival goes from strength to strength. This year the event attracted

around 80,000 people of all ages and cultures to celebrate the Chinese New Year and the

Year of the Dragon.

The Festival kicked off with an official welcome from Sebastian Agricola, President of the

St Albans Business Group Association Incorporated (SABGAI), which was then followed by

the ceremonial fire crackers and traditional Lion and Dragon Dance performance. The Festival

also featured a wide range of food stalls, rides, games and entertainment. As is customary,

the Festival culminated w ith a stunning fireworks display that filled the night sky.

Well done to the St Albans Business Group Association Incorporated for delivering another

fabulous Festival, which was made possible with funding from Brimbank Council’s Community

Grants program, the St Albans Marketing and Business Special Rate Scheme and local

business sponsorship.

INSIDE

THIS ISSUE

• Year of the Dragon

• Alfrieda Street

Masterplan

• Marketing and

Business Development

Special Rate

• Westside Wanders

• Enjoy Local

Activation Program

• St Albans Business

Association Update

Alfrieda Street Public Realm Master Plan

In 2022, Brimbank Council undertook

consultation with the St Albans

community about the Draft Alfrieda

Street Master Plan (Draft Master Plan).

The Draft Master Plan aims to improve

the urban design of Alfrieda Street

from Main Road East to Taylors Road,

including the potential for a Civic Walk

in the St Albans Town Centre.

As a result of the consultation, Council

received feedback from business

operators expressing strong concerns

about the potential loss of car parking

in the Civic Walk section of the Draft

Master Plan.

Council officers have reviewed the

feedback and made changes to the

Draft Master Plan, which now seeks to

retain more car parking.

Key features of the revised Draft

Master Plan includes:

• Widening footpaths for pedestrians

and potential trading

• Providing a public space / forecourt

in front of the St Albans Library

• Increasing greenery and

tree canopy

• Increasing public space and

amenities

• Reducing the loss of car parking

spaces to 26 spaces compared to

91 spaces in the previous draft

• Reducing the project cost from $17

million to $4.3 million.

Urban Design officers will be visiting

businesses in Alfrieda Street to discuss

the revised Draft Master Plan over

coming weeks and will be accompanied

by a Vietnamese translator. Further

information is also available on

Council's website at

St Albans Marketing and

Business Development

Special Rate Update

The current St Albans Marketing and

Development Special Rate (Special Rate

or Scheme) finishes on 30 June 2024,

which resulted in the SABGAI asking

Council to consider reintroducing the

Scheme for a further five years.

Following statutory consultation with

business operators and owners in 2023,

Brimbank Council resolved to declare

(reintroduce) the Scheme at its Meeting

on 12 December 2023. In mid-January

Council sent all impacted property

owners and business occupiers the

Notice of Levy (Notice). This Notice

provides the rate payer with the

opportunity to request a review of

Council’s decision at the Victorian Civil

and Administrative Tribunal, which must

be lodged within 30 days of the date of

the Notice.

The SABGAI have been authorised to

administer the proceeds of the Special

Rate in accordance with conditions

set out in a payment agreement with

the Council. The payment agreement

outlines legal obligations, reporting

and accounting requirements,

communication and engagement with

property and business owners and

evaluation of the activities funded by

the Special Rate.

Once the new payment agreement is

signed, one of the first requirements

is for the SABGAI to prepare a new

five-year business and marketing

plan and annual budget for the 24/25

financial year. Council will be utilising

this newsletter to share details of this

work to help keep business operators

and property owners informed about

the Special Rate.

Westside Wanders

St Albans businesses will showcase their delicious food

offerings when they take part in the 2024 Melbourne Food

and Wine Festival.

Five St Albans businesses will participate in the Westside

Wanders St Albans Tour on 16 March, 2024. The businesses

include Big Sam’ Market, Next Mart, Pho Ngon, Che Desserts

and Hanna Coffee.

Westside Wanders is presented by Eat Drink Westside

and is part of the 2024 Melbourne Food and Wine Festival.

Eat Drink Westside is a partnership involving five councils

in Melbourne’s west and is supported by Western

Melbourne Tourism.

The event is a great opportunity to market St Albans

to a wider metropolitan and regional audience through

Melbourne Food and Wine promotions, which reach

approximately 500,000 people. The food tour also provides

an opportunity to showcases the Centre to people who come

from all over Victoria and interstate.

Enjoy Local Activities

Council continues to deliver its ‘Enjoy Local’ program in

St Albans which helps create a positive and engaging

environment for visitors to the Centre.

During December 2023 activities included a roving

accordionist, live music, youth drop-in sessions at Errington

Reserve, and a program of Christmas entertainment

comprising Santa photos, roving entertainment, neon lights

in the library and pavement artwork outside Che Desserts.

The Enjoy Local program continues to June 2024, with

programming including live music, roving entertainment,

and Easter and Mother’s Day activities.

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St Albans Business

Association Update

Following delivery of the Lunar

Festival, the committee is now

organising a Twilight Market,

which will be part of the 2024

Melbourne Food and Wine Festival.

The Twilight Market will be held

on Friday 22 March at Big SAM’s

Market from 6pm – 9pm.

The SABGAI held its Annual General

Meeting (AGM) on 27 November

2023, with the following Committee

members elected:



Sebastian Agricola,

President



Duyen Anh Pham,

Vice-President



Ross Morfea,

Secretary



John Lo Riggio,

Treasurer



Committee members

, Diana Lay,

John Falcone, Des Barnard and

John Truong.

The AGM provided an opportunity

for the Committee to reflect on its

2023 marketing program, which

included the St Albans Lunar New

Year, Facebook business videos,

social media campaigns, and

Easter and Christmas activities.

Overall SABGAI described 2023 as

a productive and highly successful

year. Many of these activities

were made possible through the

St Albans Marketing and Business

Development Special Rate, which is

collected by Brimbank Council and

provided to the SABGAI.

The SABGAI Committee are looking

forward to delivering another

successful program of marketing,

events and business support in

2024, including a strong focus on

communicating with businesses

about the annual program and

associated budget.

Should you have any queries

regarding the Town Centre please

contact

Cinzia Crea

St Albans Place

Manager on



or

✉

gostalbans@brimbank.vic.gov.au

Welcome

to new

businesses

51 Alfrieda Street

68 Alfrieda Street

334 East Esplanade

13 Alfrieda Street