Article: Welcome to Ipswich. Population: Skyrocketing

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Welcome to Ipswich. Population: Skyrocketing

Welcome to Ipswich. Population: Skyrocketing
TONY MOORE
November 18, 2009 - 6:01AM

A raft of new residential developments will be constructed in Ipswich as the city copes with an influx of 150 new residents every week, Mayor Paul Pisasale said yesterday as he opened the first of two new residential estates in the city.

Meanwhile, a third parcel of land for new homes was also released yesterday at nearby Springfield, with the developer claiming there was shortage of land for residential development in Brisbane's western corridor.

The two Ipswich-based residential estates have been remodelled from older land uses.

Cr Pisasale yesterday opened the 247-lot Heritage Links estate on the old Ipswich Golf Course at Churchill.

The golf course, close to the Amberley RAAF Base Amberley, was one of the oldest golf courses in South-East Queensland.

It has been redesigned and "pushed" towards the RAAF Base, allowing the front nine holes to be redeveloped.  The RAAF Base is the biggest employer in the city.

Cr Pisasale predicted the population of Ipswich would soon top 170,000.

"Renewal of Ipswich CBD is underway and our city is growing at the rate of 152 new residents every week," he said.

"Our population of 160,000 will more than double to 435,000 within 22 years.

"We think it will be 170,000 in the new year."

Cr Pisasale will open a second residential estate today on the site of the old Bremervale Horse Stud near Bundamba Creek.

Parklands at Raceview will have 209 lots and be surrounded by 32 hectares of bushland.

Meanwhile, a 10-hectare parcel of land at Springfield zoned for 330 homes has just been released by the Springfield Land Corporation.

Springfield's Business Development general manager Terry Honan said a shortage of land in the Western Corridor meant the land was valuable for investors.

"The site is a blank canvas just waiting for a developer to put their stamp on the Western Corridor," Mr Honan said.

"The Queensland Government's South East Regional Plan identifies the Western Corridor as the area most likely to experience rapid population growth over the next 20 years because of a shortage of housing in nearby areas."

The development site fronts Augusta Parkway at Springfield.

Ipswich had a population of 140,752 in 2005 and has been growing at around 3 per cent each year since 2000, higher than Queensland's annual average population growth of 2.2 per cent.

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