Article: Brisbane booming in the middle and round the edges

[ozbob]

Brisbane booming in the middle and round the edges
August 2, 2012 - 1:00AM Katherine Feeney

Brisbane is the place to be, but people aren't living where you may think, new population figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics reveal.

The data, which captures a decade of change to 2011, reveals the Greater Brisbane Region, which excludes the Gold and Sunshine coasts, increased by 25 per cent (432,300 people) and was just behind Greater Perth (26 per cent) as the second-fastest growing capital city in Australia.

The region now accounts for nearly half of the state's population, and the Brisbane Local Government Area is home to 1,089,743 people, or 21.5 per cent more people than in 2001.

But much of change fuelling the greater Brisbane region expansion was recorded outside the Brisbane City Council limits, with the largest regional population growth recorded at Springfield Lakes in Ipswich City, and at the Moreton Bay Regional Council areas of North Lakes, Mango Hill and Cashmere.

The estimated residential population at Springfield Lakes went from zero to 10,600 people between 2001 and 2011, with North Lakes and Mango Hill growing by 17,100, and Cashmere boosted by an extra 9200 residents.

Still, Brisbane's inner-city stands out as a major hub for population growth, having jumped by 29 per cent overall in the 10-year period, including a 229.7 per cent boom in the CBD alone.

Queensland Centre for Population Research senior research fellow Tom Wilson said the days when the city's heart emptied outside work hours were over.

"These figures are what we've expected, with housing developments in the emerging suburbs among the areas that are growing rapidly, but the inner-city story is a phenomenon that has really taken hold over the last 10 years," Dr Wilson said.

"We've had huge residential growth in the CBD and we can attribute that to young, professional couples who probably work in the city – couples without children in the 20-to-34-years-old age range – and also a big growth in overseas students.

"CBD residential data shows a lot of people attending higher education, and not speaking English at home."

Dr Wilson said the inner-city growth reflected planning policies that had encouraged high-density developments in the CBD and surrounding areas, a trend reflected in other major capital cities across Australia.

"Over the years to come, population is projected to reach 3 to 4 million by next century – we're getting to the size of Melbourne now, so we can expect to see a lot more dwelling construction and in-fill development," he said.

"The medium-level housing developments we're seeing in Fortitude Valley and Newstead now are indicative of what's to come."

North Lakes Community Women's Group head and former local councillor Yvonne Barlow said she was unsurprised her region was growing and thought the area would keep up with demand.

"I think North Lakes is developing quite well," she said.

"I think people have realised that life is very good outside of [Brisbane] city; you don't have to live in the centre of things to have access to the things you need.

"But of course, with growth in all new areas there are some problems, some of which are associated with people who are drawn from a diverse range of backgrounds – we have a lot of people from overseas and interstate living here, especially people from the United Kingdom."

But Dr Wilson said interstate and foreign migration weren't the only population levers fuelling the boom; a significant amount of Brisbane's growth would be "home-grown" in the years to come.

"We've got a young population," he said.

"Much of the future growth will be coming from more births than deaths."

Brisbane's population growth breakdown

Suburbs with the biggest percentage increases in Estimated Residential Population

    Wakerley: 8087 ERP, up 425.8 per cent, or 6549 more people
    Pallara – Willawong: 3999 ERP, up 286 per cent, or 2963 more people
    Parkinson – Drewvale: 14,983 ERP, up 138.5, per cent or 8700 more people
    Newstead - Bowen Hills: 7818 ERP, up 106.7 per cent, or 4036 more people
    Fortitude Valley: 5586 ERP, up 106.5 per cent, or 2881 more people

Suburbs with the biggest percentage decreases in Estimated Residential Population

    Eagle Farm – Pinkenba: 271 ERP, down 15 per cent, or 48 less people.
    Middle Park - Jamboree Heights: 7393 ERP, down 3.6 per cent, or 277 less people.
    Alexandra Hills: 17,286 ERP, down 3.2 per cent, or 578 less people.
    Stafford Heights: 7011 ERP, down 2.1 per cent, or 154 less people.
    Jindalee - Mount Ommaney: 7591 ERP, down 1.4 per cent, or 10 less people.

Most Populated Suburbs

    Calamvale – Stretton: 19,362 ERP, up 46 per cent, or 6099 more people.
    Sunnybank Hills: 17,740 ERP, up 10 per cent, or 1610 more people.
    Capalaba 17,483 ERP, down 1.3 per cent, or 226 less people.
    Bracken Ridge: 17,432 ERP, up 19.8 per cent, or 2,882 more people.
    Alexandra Hills 17,286 ERP, down 3.2 per cent, or 578 less people.

Least Populated Suburbs

    Mount Coot-tha: 0 ERP, no change.
    Brisbane Port – Lytton: 7 ERP, no change.
    Enoggera Reservoir: 26 ERP, no change.
    Brisbane Airport: 93 ERP, up 60.3 per cent, or 35 more people.
    Albion: 2679 ERP, up 21.6 per cent, or 476 more people.

Suburbs with the greatest density

    New Farm: 12,458 ERP, up 18.4 per cent, 5861.7 people per square kilometre
    Kangaroo Point: 7486 ERP, up 32.1 per cent, with 5752.7 people per square kilometre
    Highgate Hill: 6278 ERP, up 17.1 per cent, with 5187.6 people per square kilometre
    Spring Hill: 5963 ERP, up 71.1 per cent, with 4792.7 people per square kilometre
    West End: 8672 ERP, up 46.2 per cent, with 4504 people per square kilometre

Suburbs with the least density

    Mount Coot-tha: 0 ERP, no change.
    Brisbane Port – Lytton: 7 ERP, no change, with 02 people per square kilometre
    Enoggera Reservoir: 26 ERP, no change, with 0.7 people per square kilometre
    Brisbane Airport: 93 ERP, up 60.3 per cent, with 2 people per square kilometre
    Redland Islands: 8996 ERP, up 42.9 per cent, with 18.4 people per square kilometre

Read more: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/brisbane-booming-in-the-middle-and-round-the-edges-20120801-23fd6.html

View Brisbane's population growth breakdown in a larger map