By Cam Lucadou-Wells
Springvale’s unpopular 8 Balmoral Avenue car park may be set for a proposed near-$1 million revamp in the next 12 months.
In Greater Dandenong Council’s 2021-’22 draft budget, $942,793 has been allocated to install new one-way ramps to bypass three of the car park’s tightest corners.
The six-deck, 517-space facility has been central Springvale’s great parking paradox.
It often stands more than half empty while drivers hunt for sparse on-street parking.
Greater Dandenong councillor Richard Lim said the re-design should attract drivers back.
Many had been deterred by the numerous head-on bingles and scrapes on the tight, blind corners between levels, he said.
Cars are regularly wedged at the corners for up to 20 minutes, with long traffic queues behind them. In an emergency, the result could be dire, Cr Lim says.
The project should prove cost-effective for the council in the long-term.
He said the car park would raise an extra $700,000 revenue a year if it was fully utilized, Cr Lim said.
In the past, an extra one-way ramp was installed on the first floor with successful results.
There were further flaws still to be rectified – such as moving back and painting an intrusive pillar from the diagonal chicane entrance.
More lighting and CCTV was required to make people feel safe, he said.
He’d notified Springvale senior police of issues of high-revving hoons and groups hanging out on the top deck, he said.
Cr Lim, who runs a nearby pharmacy, bought parking permits for his staff. But few use them – many too “scared” to walk into the dark empty car park at night.
The ‘No.8’ car park was built by private developers in 2011.
The council contributed to the construction for an extra two levels to create more public parking.
Since then, the council has fixed a litany of faults such as broken-down lifts, ticket machines, boom gates and the first level’s tight corner.
