City of Port Phillip- Melbourne Inner City Suburbs

 

The City of Port Phillip is a considered an inner-city council area on the southern fringe of the Melbourne CBD, stretching down to the iconic Port Phillip Bay.

 

It is situated between 2 and 8 kilometres from the Melbourne General Post Office in the heart of the Melbourne CBD and, while it only has an area of 20 square kilometres, it had a population of 108,558 people in the 2016 Census, thanks to its densely-populated mix of high-rise units and quaint historic attached buildings.

It is one of the highest-profile hip parts of Melbourne, thanks to its varied and substantial retail, entertainment and leisure precincts.

It is borne out in the population data as well with 25 to 34-year-olds making up 26% of the population, 25-49 year olds making up 25.2% of the population, with corresponding low rates of retirees and pre-school children compared to the rest of Greater Melbourne according to 2016 Census Figures.

 

The bustling retail and entertainment precincts include Bay Street (Port Melbourne), Victoria Avenue (Albert Park), Clarendon Street (South Melbourne), Armstrong Street (Middle Park), Fitzroy Street (St Kilda), Acland Street (St Kilda), Carlisle Street (Balaclava) and Ormond Road (Elwood).

If you ask someone who has visited Melbourne, they would probably focus on the iconic St Kilda beach, which is one of Melbourne’s summer-time playgrounds with its bustling mix of beachside shops, bars and the ever-popular Luna Park amusement park built in 1912 with its distinctive and, frankly, a little creepy laughing face.

St Kilda is renowned for its safe, sandy beach, palm-lined boardwalk, huge range of beach activities, great restaurants, bars and cafes as well as beautiful parks and gardens.

 

 

It is also known for the Esplanade Hotel, Catani Gardens as well as the bustling retail and eat streets of Acland Street and Fitzroy Street.

While the locals also love going to St Kilda to wine, dine and jog, they will also tell you that the entire area is great to live in.

While Port Melbourne, South Melbourne, Albert Park and Elwood may not be as famous as St Kilda, that doesn’t mean they aren’t a good spot to hang your hat.

They have a fantastic combination of close access to the city (you could even walk to work if you wanted), are very well served by the city’s famous tram network, lots of nearby employment opportunities, plenty to do and a seemingly endless choice of food and drink options.

As mentioned, the public transport options are top notch with a substantial tram network, the St Kilda and Port Melbourne light rail lines, two railway stations on the Sandringham railway line.

The entire area has been the epicentre of Melbourne’s inner-city urban renewal since the 1990s when the former industrial manufacturing, warehousing and industrial districts started being transformed into trendy residential areas, that were often styled on their industrial forefathers, especially along the waterfront areas.

There are also plenty of significant employment areas within Port Phillip, not including the Melbourne CBD itself. These include the  St Kilda Road business district and industrial, warehousing and manufacturing districts in South Melbourne and Port Melbourne, which also now contain their own myriad of retail, hospitality and service economy employment options.

Of the 57,698 people who were employed in the City of Port Phillip in 2016, 71% worked full-time and 28% part-time.

For the person who could work from home each day, it would be the best of both worlds, with lots of nearby options for coffee and food during the work day as you bash away at your laptop, sitting in the sun.

There are also plenty of large annual entertainment events in the area, most notably the Melbourne Grand Prix around the Albert Park track, the St Kilda Festival and the Gay Pride festival.

 

The Grand Prix currently takes place in early March when the entire fast-paced and fabulously rich world of Grand Prix followers descend on Melbourne for four days of motor racing and all of the opulent entertainment that goes with it.

 

The Grand Prix goes hand in hand with the Moomba Festival over the Labour Day long weekend with its jam-packed mix of rides, stalls, floats, nightly fireworks and fun attracting more than 300,000 revellers each year.

 

Highlights of the even are the Moomba Masters Championship, the wacky and wonderful Birdman Rally where costumed people see how far they can jump into the water and the iconic Moomba Parade on the holiday Monday.

 

Great for visitors, inconvenient for locals but no-one seems to really mind.

 

With relatively low statistical rates of school-age children in the area, there aren’t lots of schools, but they include seven primary schools, Albert Park Secondary College, Elwood Secondary College and the selective Mac Robertson Girls’ High School and the Anglican St Michael’s Grammar School.

 

Suburbs and localities in the City of Port Phillip are Albert Park, Balaclava, Beacon Cove, Elwood, Garden City, Middle Park, Port Melbourne, Ripponlea, Southbank, South Melbourne, South Wharf, St Kilda, St Kilda East, St Kilda Road, St Kilda West and Windsor.

 

All in all, a great place to live with the best of everything, as long as you are prepared to put up with the hustle, bustle and occasional inconvenience of inner city living as well as the occasional festival.