Melbourne Square, the city’s largest mixed-use urban precinct, has secured a deal for Souuthbank’s first full-line supermarket with Woolworths.
The precinct’s property developer, OSK Property, said the deal with Woolworths would provide consumers with access to major retail amenities and support the inner city hub’s rapidly growing population.
The supermarket will span approximately 3,800 square metres across two levels, with 120 dedicated retail car parking spaces.
According to OSK, as Melbourne ‘sprouts vertically,’ major retail destinations across multiple levels are likely to become the way of the future in inner-city locations.
Executive chairman of Malaysian developer OSK Property, Tan Sri Ong Leong Huat, said the Woolworths supermarket would deliver critical amenity to the inner-city suburb that is experiencing rapid population growth.
“Southbank’s population is expected to exceed 50,000 by 2036, which is 174 per cent higher than the current population,” he said.
“It is essential that the community is able to access basic everyday amenity so that the area’s expanding population can be adequately accommodated.”
Woolworths’ state property manager Brad Karge said there was high demand from residents living in Melbourne’s Southbank to have access to a full-line supermarket.
“From fresh fruit and vegetables to a large range of grocery items at great prices, those living in the area will be able to pick up all their shopping essentials, without needing to travel too far,” he said.
The supermarket is expected to open in late 2020, aligning with the completion of stage one of Melbourne Square.
The Woolworths supermarket is the first major retail announcement for the Melbourne Square mixed-used development, which will consist of 15,000 square metres of amenity across multiple levels.
Stage one includes 6,000 square metres of retail space and will feature shopping, dining and cafe facilities in a European-inspired, piazza-style setting.
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