Should this UFO-like building replace the bus hub in Hargreaves Mall?
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The idea has been raised in Victoria's parliament after the Good Loaf Bakery moved out and the property at 404 Hargreaves Street hit the market.
The distinctive circular building and adjoining warehouse is on the market for $5 million plus GST.
People could also lease it for $120,000 a year plus GST and outgoings, real estate agents at Tweed Sutherland First National said.
Question raised in parliament
The idea of moving the Hargreaves Mall bus stops a block away to the old Good Loaf building has piqued the interest of state member for Northern Victoria Gaelle Broad.
She first heard the idea from a business person with links to the Mall and has now used parliament to ask Minister for Transport Infrastructure Danny Pearson to look into the feasibility of the idea.
"I think it was a really good suggestion and what I'm asking the government to do is review its merits," she told the Bendigo Advertiser.
The Nationals opposition member is waiting for a response.
"Ministers can vary in the time it takes to issue responses. I've got some that have come very quickly, some that take months and some that are still unanswered," Ms Broad said.
"I certainly hope this one will get some urgent consideration. It is a site that is vacant at the moment, and may not remain that way."
Kristian Wenckowski owns the soon-to-close Mall store Colliers Shoes and thinks the sale of 404 Hargreaves Street would be a golden opportunity to deal with one of the problems the area faced.
He said the number of people waiting for the bus in and around Mitchell Street was one factor holding the area back.
"If you're a retailer, people can't access your store. And there's empty tenancies there that will never be filled," Mr Wenckowski said.
The [bus hub] has to move for the survival of the retail strip."
What it could take
Buses do not currently travel down Hargreaves Street and the state's transport department would need to take a host of factors into account if they were to move the hub.
That included safety, local road traffic, street layouts. They also needed to cater for older people and those with mobility issues.
A spokesperson said there was another reason the department used the Mall.
"Hargreaves Mall and the surrounding shops are a significant destination for many public transport users in the Bendigo community which is why there is a popular stop close to that location that is serviced by almost all bus routes," they said.
The heritage-registered site at 404 Hargreaves Street was built in 1958 as a Beaurepaires garage and service station.
It is the only "round house" servo in Victoria, according to the state's heritage database.
"The building, round like a tyre, declares its function to passers-by," it said.
Tom O'Callaghan
I grew up in Bendigo and I want to tell your stories.
I grew up in Bendigo and I want to tell your stories.
