Q150 Flashback - 1957 - Brisbane's First Shopping Centre [WS]

Chermside Drive-In Shopping Centre (Now Westfield Chermside) was opened on 31 May 1957 by the then Premier of Queensland Vince Gair. Police were needed to keep an estimated 15,000 shoppers who had queued to secure bargains. It was marketed as the first suburban-style, post-war shopping precinct in the southern hemisphere. The shopping centre was air-conditioned and had a modern design. It initially contained an Allan & Stark department store, a Brisbane Cash & Carry supermarket, 24 speciality stores, parking for 650 cars and covered 28 acres. Porters were available to carry purchased items to shopper's cars.

Allan & Stark became Myer in 1959 when the latter company purchased the former. In 1965, the centre was air-conditioned and a restaurant was constructed. The original building that housed Myer was razed and a larger 3 level replacement building was opened in June 1977. Several renovations were completed in 1985, 1986 and 1987 adding another 29 stores and an underground car park to the centre. A business mall was constructed in February 1992.

The Westfield Group purchased the property from Coles-Myer in December 1996. In 1999, work began on a major redevelopment of the centre which was to nearly double its floor space. The redevelopment resulted in most of the existing structure being demolished, save for the Myer store and some pieces of adjoining mall, to make way for the larger complex. Stage one opened on August 9, which contained a Coles and a new bus interchange. In 2000, the second stage of the redevelopment opened, containing a Kmart, Bi-Lo (which existed until March 2008), Target and a 900 seat food court. A new Birch Carroll & Coyle cinema complex also opened, which took many customers away from the one then at Westfield Toombul.

In 2005, construction began on another expansion, which officially opened on October 19, 2006 and contained 2,300 more car parks, and over 100 new specialty stores. In August 2007, the two level David Jones store was officially opened and is located in the same expansion. The following year saw the opening of another department store on the site of the former Bi-Lo supermarket, however smaller, which is the first Harris Scarfe store in Brisbane. In late 2009, an Apple Store opened in the centre.

Despite all its major successes during its ownership by Westfield, the centre has been blamed for the downturn in trade in surrounding shopping centres, especially Centro Toombul. In the case of Toombul, the ex-Westfield centre's trade has been affected during the 21st century, which has resulted in the closure of its Birch Carroll & Coyle cinemas, and of several other retailers.
*From Wikipedia
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*1000 views - 24/1/12

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Tags:

• Flashback
• BTQ7
• shopping
• australia
• store
• Brisbane
• Shopping Centre
• 1957
• Chermside
• Westfield