Kenmore, Queensland
| Kenmore Brisbane, Queensland | |||||||||||||||
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| Population | 8,206 (2006)[1] | ||||||||||||||
| • Density | Lua error: Unable to convert population "8206 (2006)" to a number. | ||||||||||||||
| Postcode(s) | 4069 | ||||||||||||||
| Area | 5.2 km2 (2.0 sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| LGA(s) | Brisbane City Council, Pullenvale Ward[2] | ||||||||||||||
| State electorate(s) | Moggill | ||||||||||||||
| Federal division(s) | Ryan | ||||||||||||||
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Kenmore is a suburb of Brisbane, Australia located 10 km south-west of the Brisbane CBD. Kenmore is a leafy suburb with a high number of professional residents and families. It is dominated by detached housing - units and townhouses are rare. Kenmore has benefited greatly from the Centenary Highway that gives it direct access to the city via Milton Road or Coronation Drive.
There are a number of schools in the suburb, including Kenmore State School, Kenmore South State School, Kenmore State High School, and private Christian schools. There are a large number of restaurants as well as two large retail centres, Kenmore Village and Kenmore Plaza, located on Moggill Road.
As one of the suburbs developed during the 1950s and 1960s, Kenmore is currently experiencing a surge of renovation and modernisation.A recent demographic study found that, placed in comparison to other suburbs of Brisbane, Kenmore can be described as:
• slightly older; • affluent with higher incomes; • higher levels of families (either couples or sole parents) with children; • higher levels of home ownership and owner occupiers; • extremely high levels of single dwellings housing stock; • higher levels of private vehicle commuting to and from work than use of public transport or active transport; • having a similar ethnic background; • longer periods of residence in the same dwelling; and • high levels of volunteering indicating a strong sense of community[3]
According to the 2006 Census there were 8,206 people living in the suburb with a median age of 39. Of all occupied private dwellings 80.4% were either fully owned or being purchased; 15.4% were being rented.
According to the Real Estate Institute of Queensland[4], Kenmore is likely to experience strong growth throughout the next decade as demand for near-city living expands into the suburbs. The suburb should continue to attract interest from those who enjoy access to a variety of facilities but still enjoy leafy urban environments.
Kenmore's history has been compiled by local historian, Lesley Jenkins, as part of the BRISbites community history project.[5]. A lengthier local online history has been compiled by David Horton and Kerry Raymond [6].
Geographically, Kenmore is characterised by its rolling hills and greenery.
Attractions
'Kenmore Village Shopping Centre' is a central shopping centre located near the Moggill Road and Brookfield Road intersection. The shopping centre also has offices. Kenmore Plaza is another large shopping centre in the area. There are restaurants in Kenmore, including cafés, take-aways, pubs and restaurants. The Indooroopilly Shopping Centre, a large mall with over 250 retail outlets, is a short (2 km) distance from Kenmore.
The Brisbane City Council will open a new council library at the Kenmore Village Shopping Centre on Moggill road over what is the car park. The new facility will feature free public internet access and free wireless interest for library members, large meeting rooms available 24/7, self check-out facilities, a large range of books, magazines, cds, dvds, audio books and large print. The new library will open mid-December 2010.
Kenmore has a number of churches, including Our Lady of the Rosary, Kenmore Baptist Church, Kenmore Community Church (currently located in Bellbowrie), Kenmore Anglican Church, Fuel Christian Church and Kenmore Uniting Church.
Sports
Kenmore has a large number of parks and playing fields. It has easy access to outdoors activities in surrounding suburbs, including walking tracks and roads to Mt Coot-tha lookout, botanical gardens and the planetarium; boating ramps into the Brisbane River and horse riding facilities in Fig Tree Pocket and Brookfield.
It has a variety of sporting venues that are available for use. The largest and easiest to access is Akuna Oval, which has areas for soccer, AFL and rugby, as well as extensive walking tracks throughout the area. Other venues that can be rented through prior arrangement are the Kenmore Primary School tennis courts and some facilities at Kenmore South Primary School. Community classes are often held at various areas around Kenmore during term-time, and these classes range from yoga to fencing to pilates. There is also a women-only gym, Curves International, on Brookfield Road.
Kenmore Australian Football Club Gem Road Park Soccer Association Kenmore Lions F.C. Kenmore Century Bears Rugby Union
Community Groups
Sayer's Ballet Academy, which does centre-court performances every school holidays at Kenmore Village Shopping Centre.
Kenmore is dissected by Moggill Creek, and there is an environmental group known as the Moggill Creek Catchment Group that organizes working bees to rid the creek area of rubbish and introduced plant species that are not suited to the area.
The Rotary Club of Kenmore[7] is nonpolitical, nonreligious and open to all cultures, races and creeds. As signified by the motto Service Above Self, Rotary's main objective is service in the community, in the workplace and throughout the world [8]. Meetings are on Wednesdays at 6.00 for 6.30pm at the Boulevard Gardens.
Transport
Kenmore is well connected to the city and the University of Queensland by road and bus.
By Road, the main road through Kenmore is Moggill Road. The retail centre of Kenmore is clustered around the roundabout where Brookfield and Moggill Roads intersect. Another transport hub is at the Kenmore Tavern complex, on the corner of Marshall Lane and Moggill Road.
A bypass (the Kenmore Bypass) is currently being proposed to alleviate congestion along Moggil Road during peak commuting hours but has caused some objections from within the community [9]. [10] [11][12]
By Train, there is no rail station in Kenmore. Indooroopilly is the closest station. In the 1890s the Queensland Parliament approved the construction of a rail line from Indooroopilly to Brookfield, running through the southern side of Kenmore following the valley of Cubberla Creek and thence roughly parallel to the present alignment of Kersley Road. However the line was never constructed.
References
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Kenmore (Brisbane City) (State Suburb)". 2006 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 2008-02-28.
- ^ Pullenvale Ward - Brisbane City Council
- ^ http://www.mainroads.qld.gov.au/web/AttachStore.nsf/allobjects/kenmore-bypass-environmental-approvals-report-june-2009/$file/ear-june-2009-chapter-12.pdf socioeconomic analysis of Kenmore
- ^ http://www.reiq.com.au/buySellRent/community_view.asp?suburb_id=114
- ^ [1]
- ^ [2]
- ^ http://rotarykenmore.org/ Rotary Club of Kenmore
- ^ http://www.rotary.org/en/AboutUs/RotaryInternational/Pages/ridefault.aspx Rotary International
- ^ Moggill Pocket Arterial Road/Moggill-Warrego Highway Connection - Queensland Department of Main Roads
- ^ Green light likely for Kenmore Bypass - Queensland - BrisbaneTimes
- ^ Selling a 'Lemon': the Kenmore Bypass
- ^ http://www.mainroads.qld.gov.au/web/publicCR.nsf/DOCINDEX/Kenmore+Bypass+Planning+Study#contact Environmental Approvals Report for Kenmore Bypass