The Hawke Street Linear Park proposal aims to better balance the local needs of cars, people, bike riders, animals and the environment. The Transport and Amenity Program in association with City Design and Transport Engineering teams worked collaboratively with the following key design principles in mind.
Key design principles
- Promoting Hawke Street as a local road by implementing traffic calming measures.
- Improving safety and amenity for bike riders and pedestrians.
- Strengthening climate resilience, by reducing the ‘urban heat island’ effect with additional tree canopy shade and permeable surfaces for rain water absorption.
- Providing flexible green spaces that support a range of community uses.
- Prioritising remaining on-street car parking for local residents and businesses.
They
have recommended reducing the roadway to one lane in each direction and
replacing a section of paved road and underutilised parking spots with green
space. This would connect the two existing parks through the new linear parkland.
New concept plan
Updated features
Key changes since community consultation feedback
Key benefits
- New open space: The reconfiguration of Hawke Street will create over 3,000m2 of new usable open space beyond the new bike lanes and upgraded footpaths and existing reserves.
- A healthy urban forest: The urban forest will be doubled from 148 trees to over 300 trees. New trees to be selected for climate resilience, biodiversity and increased canopy coverage creating a cooler environment. Some existing trees will benefit from improved growing conditions and succession planting as they reach maturity.
- Connection to country: Ongoing collaboration with the Wurundjeri Woi Wurung and Aboriginal Melbourne to strengthen the community’s understanding of place through elements including story telling, art and indigenous and native planting design.
- New bike lanes: Approximately 1km of new bike lanes going in both directions. These dedicated lanes will create safer conditions and encourage cycling within the community.
- Improved bike connections: Protected bike lanes will help establish a strong connection for bike riders from West Melbourne into the city and beyond.
- Improved pedestrian connectivity: Upgraded footpaths and new improved crossings will create a safer environment for pedestrians.
- Parking: Reconfigured parking with allocation of parking bays to benefit local residents, visitors and businesses.
- Water sensitive urban design: Passive irrigation and increased permeable surfaces to reduce stormwater runoff and improve water quality.
Landscape design map
Explore the proposed park design for Hawke Street Linear Park. Select each spot to understand more about different elements.
Proposed linear open space between Adderley and Spencer streets
Illustrated section looking down Hawke Street between Adderley and Spencer streets. It shows separated bike lanes on both sides of the road, in-road tree plots, a dedicated pedestrian footpath adjacent to an almost eight metre wide public green space. For additional section views, please see PDF plan below.
Document Library
Initial concept proposal
Key changes
- Introducing a new linear open space along the north side of the street between Railway Place and King Street landscaped with grass, garden beds and trees.
- Repurposing of some under-utilised on-street car parks with new open space and increased tree canopy.
- Replacing some street trees with more robust species to meet City of Melbourne’s Urban Forest canopy cover and biodiversity targets.
- A 3.5m wide shared path for bike riders and pedestrians.
- Retaining and improving the existing play space at the corner of Adderley Street and the parkland connecting to Curzon Street.
- One road lane for vehicles in each direction on the southern side of the street, instead of two lanes separated by a wide median strip.
Location of Hawke Street
A 2020 car parking survey found over 35 per cent of publicly available parking spaces in the area were not used at peak periods. It is therefore anticipated that the repurposing of approximately 49 out of 157 existing car park spaces will not result in a noticeable loss of amenity.
It is predicted that 108 spaces would be retained and prioritised for local residents and businesses.
Park design map
Explore the proposed park design for Hawke Street Linear Park. Select each spot to understand more about different elements and future connections on the street.
Legend
Proposed configuration of roadway and parking
Future protected bike lanes
Indicative canopy of new and existing trees
Existing parks and extended reserve
Proposed 3.5m shared user path (bidirectional)
Proposed linear parkland
Proposed area improvements
A before and after artist impression of the expanded park area between Spencer and Adderley Streets, and a section view from between Spencer and King Streets (not to scale).
Slide arrow to see before and after images.
Section AA: New expanded park area between Spencer and Adderley streets (not to scale).
Section BB: New expanded park area between Spencer and King streets (not to scale).
