Innaloo, Western Australia
Encyclopedia
Innaloo is a suburb of Perth
, the capital city of Western Australia
, and it is located 9 km from Perth's central business district
. Its Local Government Area
is the City of Stirling.
Innaloo is a more established residential suburb that is also home to the Westfield Innaloo
and Westfield Innaloo Megacentre shopping centres, and is adjacent to Perth's largest cinema complex, the 18-cinema Greater Union Megaplex Innaloo
Aboriginal
name for a nearby swamp
. This name was too difficult to pronounce or spell, and in 1927, the local progress association asked welfare worker and anthropologist Daisy Bates
to compile a list of words and names. The name of an Aboriginal woman from Dongara
was chosen for the area. It is much beloved of comedians making fun of place names, along with the suburb of Upper Swan
. However, all attempts at changing the name from Innaloo have so far failed.
, was built in 1915. Although subdivision for southern Innaloo was approved in 1916, by the 1920s only ten houses had been built, with the majority of the land used for grazing. Residential development accelerated during World War II
, and in the 1950s, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
(MGM) built a drive-in cinema in nearby Liege Street.
, and the light industrial and commercial centre of Osborne Park
, the building of the Nookenburra Hotel (1962) and shopping centre (1967) and the nearby civic centre
in Hertha Road (1966). The Mitchell Freeway
was extended to Hutton Street in 1981 and to Karrinyup Road in 1984, and the shopping centre also hosted the region's main bus station until the construction of Stirling bus/train interchange
about a kilometre away in 1992. In 1999, Ellen Stirling Boulevard, named after the wife of the first governor of Western Australia
, was constructed on land purchased from the last market gardeners in the area to replace the increasingly hazardous Oswald Street as the main through link between the freeway and the shopping areas.
and the future line of Stephenson Avenue to the east. The majority of the suburb is residential, apart from the shopping areas in the south-east, several small parks and an undeveloped portion to the east of Ellen Stirling Boulevard. Some of the undeveloped area next to Stirling station has been developed as a commercial area centred around a new Ikea
store.
At the ABS
2006 census, Innaloo had a mostly middle-income population of 6,470 people.
Most homes are single detached homes of timber-frame construction built around World War II
, but some duplexes and recently built units also exist. A number of elderly homes including Geneff Village, named for Sorrento businessman and philanthropist George Geneff (who also built the Nookenburra Hotel), are located within the suburb.
shopping centre. Next to Westfield Innaloo on Ellen Stirling Boulevard is the Westfield Innaloo Megacentre (acquired from Centro
in August 2006), which contains 20 stores and a Progressive Supa IGA (formerly Action
). Across Scarborough Beach Road is the Greater Union Megaplex. The northern part of the suburb also contains a small local shopping area in Morris Place. Opposite the Megacenter, an IKEA
has been constructed, replacing the smaller store a kilometre away in the adjoining suburb of Osborne Park.
Innaloo's southern border with Woodlands
hosts Perth's largest cinema complex, the 18-cinema Greater Union Megaplex Innaloo, which contains Gold Class cinemas, as well as an arcade with numerous restaurants and dining speciality outlets, including Sizzler
, Han's Cafe, Bollywood Resto Bar and Retro Betty's, and a game centre (centred on Timezone
). It started off life as an MGM drive-in in the 1950s, then was rebuilt by Greater Union in 1990 with 8 screens, then expanded to a Megaplex - the first in Western Australia - in 1996.
on the Joondalup Line, including the 410, 411, 412, 421, 426 and the 98/99 CircleRoute
, and the 423 and 425 along the Karrinyup Road boundary. Additionally, the 400 and 408 services link Scarborough and the Glendalough railway station along Innaloo's southern boundary. Innaloo's location next to the rail line makes it one of the best served areas for public transport in Perth.
Prior to the construction of the Stirling railway station as part of the Northern Suburbs Transit System
, a possible deviation of the rail alignment was considered to directly service the suburb and it's shopping district including Westfield Innaloo
. However, this idea was rejected by both the project and the public at large due to the significant cost, lack of identifiable benefits, and environmental impact grounds.
" families, as well as many elderly voters. The Yuluma booth is among the northern suburbs' few genuinely marginal booths at federal level. However, they strongly support the Australian Labor Party
at state elections
.
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
, the capital city of Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
, and it is located 9 km from Perth's central business district
Central business district
A central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. In North America this part of a city is commonly referred to as "downtown" or "city center"...
. Its Local Government Area
Local Government Areas of Western Australia
The Australian state of Western Australia is divided into 141 local government areas...
is the City of Stirling.
Innaloo is a more established residential suburb that is also home to the Westfield Innaloo
Westfield Innaloo
Westfield Innaloo is a major shopping centre in the northern suburbs of Perth, located approximately 8 km north-west of the CBD at the corner of Scarborough Beach Road and Ellen Stirling Boulevard in Innaloo...
and Westfield Innaloo Megacentre shopping centres, and is adjacent to Perth's largest cinema complex, the 18-cinema Greater Union Megaplex Innaloo
History
Innaloo was originally named "Njookenbooroo", a local NoongarNoongar
The Noongar are an indigenous Australian people who live in the south-west corner of Western Australia from Geraldton on the west coast to Esperance on the south coast...
Aboriginal
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
name for a nearby swamp
Swamp
A swamp is a wetland with some flooding of large areas of land by shallow bodies of water. A swamp generally has a large number of hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodical inundation. The two main types of swamp are "true" or swamp...
. This name was too difficult to pronounce or spell, and in 1927, the local progress association asked welfare worker and anthropologist Daisy Bates
Daisy Bates (Australia)
Daisy May Bates, CBE was an Irish Australian journalist, welfare worker and lifelong student of Australian Aboriginal culture and society. She was known among the native people as 'Kabbarli' .-Early life:...
to compile a list of words and names. The name of an Aboriginal woman from Dongara
Dongara, Western Australia
Dongara is a town located 351 km north-northwest of Perth on the Brand Highway. The town is located at the mouth of the Irwin River. In recent years the area has been marketed as the 'Rock lobster capital of Australia'....
was chosen for the area. It is much beloved of comedians making fun of place names, along with the suburb of Upper Swan
Upper Swan, Western Australia
Upper Swan is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia, located in the City of Swan local government area.It contains Upper Swan Primary School....
. However, all attempts at changing the name from Innaloo have so far failed.
From settlement to suburb
Land near Innaloo was first granted to Thomas Mews in 1831. In 1898, Town Properties of WA subdivided the lands around Njookenbooroo Swamp for sale as market gardens and drained the swamp into Herdsman Lake over the following years, digging channels through the area to facilitate agriculture. They offered rent-free lease of the lots with an option to later purchase at £100 per hectare if the occupants cleared them and brought them into production. The area between Hertha Road, Oswald Street and King Edward Road and Herdsman Lake was gazetted as the Njookenbooroo Drainage District, and by 1912, local market gardeners were turning off 25 tonnes of produce each week, even considering the vagaries of the weather and occasional pests. The Njookenbooroo School on Odin Road (then called Government Road), linked to the city by a plank roadPlank road
A plank road or puncheon is a dirt path or road covered with a series of planks, similar to the wooden sidewalks one would see in a Western movie. Plank roads were very popular in Ontario, the U.S. Northeast and U.S. Midwest in the first half of the 19th century...
, was built in 1915. Although subdivision for southern Innaloo was approved in 1916, by the 1920s only ten houses had been built, with the majority of the land used for grazing. Residential development accelerated during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and in the 1950s, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
(MGM) built a drive-in cinema in nearby Liege Street.
Development of modern Innaloo
Development of the suburb was essentially complete by 1970, and its status increased due to its proximity to Scarborough BeachScarborough, Western Australia
Scarborough is a coastal suburb of Perth, Western Australia, located approximately 14 km northwest of the city centre in the local government area of the City of Stirling...
, and the light industrial and commercial centre of Osborne Park
Osborne Park, Western Australia
Osborne Park is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Its Local Government Area is the City of Stirling.Osborne Park was named after William Osborne, a butcher who owned an abattoir on Wanneroo Road and was elected to the Perth Road Board , in 1875.The suburb was originally full of market gardens,...
, the building of the Nookenburra Hotel (1962) and shopping centre (1967) and the nearby civic centre
Stirling, Western Australia
The City of Stirling is a Local Government Area in the northern suburbs of the Western Australian capital city of Perth, located about north of Perth's central business district...
in Hertha Road (1966). The Mitchell Freeway
Mitchell Freeway
Mitchell Freeway is a long freeway in Perth, Western Australia, linking Perth's central business district with its outer northern suburbs. It is allocated Route 2 for its entire length and is named after former state Premier and Governor Sir James Mitchell....
was extended to Hutton Street in 1981 and to Karrinyup Road in 1984, and the shopping centre also hosted the region's main bus station until the construction of Stirling bus/train interchange
Stirling railway station, Perth
Stirling railway station is a Transperth train and bus interchange located northwest of Perth railway station in Western Australia, on the Joondalup Line.-History:...
about a kilometre away in 1992. In 1999, Ellen Stirling Boulevard, named after the wife of the first governor of Western Australia
James Stirling (Australian governor)
Admiral Sir James Stirling RN was a British naval officer and colonial administrator. His enthusiasm and persistence persuaded the British Government to establish the Swan River Colony and he became the first Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Western Australia...
, was constructed on land purchased from the last market gardeners in the area to replace the increasingly hazardous Oswald Street as the main through link between the freeway and the shopping areas.
Geography
Innaloo is bounded by Karrinyup Road to the north, Huntriss Road to the west, Scarborough Beach Road to the south and Mitchell FreewayMitchell Freeway
Mitchell Freeway is a long freeway in Perth, Western Australia, linking Perth's central business district with its outer northern suburbs. It is allocated Route 2 for its entire length and is named after former state Premier and Governor Sir James Mitchell....
and the future line of Stephenson Avenue to the east. The majority of the suburb is residential, apart from the shopping areas in the south-east, several small parks and an undeveloped portion to the east of Ellen Stirling Boulevard. Some of the undeveloped area next to Stirling station has been developed as a commercial area centred around a new Ikea
IKEA
IKEA is a privately held, international home products company that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture such as beds and desks, appliances and home accessories. The company is the world's largest furniture retailer...
store.
At the ABS
Australian Bureau of Statistics
The Australian Bureau of Statistics is Australia's national statistical agency. It was created as the Commonwealth Bureau of Census and Statistics on 8 December 1905, when the Census and Statistics Act 1905 was given Royal assent. It had its beginnings in section 51 of the Constitution of Australia...
2006 census, Innaloo had a mostly middle-income population of 6,470 people.
Most homes are single detached homes of timber-frame construction built around World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, but some duplexes and recently built units also exist. A number of elderly homes including Geneff Village, named for Sorrento businessman and philanthropist George Geneff (who also built the Nookenburra Hotel), are located within the suburb.
Facilities
Innaloo contains the Westfield InnalooWestfield Innaloo
Westfield Innaloo is a major shopping centre in the northern suburbs of Perth, located approximately 8 km north-west of the CBD at the corner of Scarborough Beach Road and Ellen Stirling Boulevard in Innaloo...
shopping centre. Next to Westfield Innaloo on Ellen Stirling Boulevard is the Westfield Innaloo Megacentre (acquired from Centro
Centro Properties Group
Centro Properties Group, commonly known as 'Centro', is an Australian company which provides retail property ownership and management services. It is a listed company with securities traded on the Australian Securities Exchange. The multinational company owns and operates shopping centres in...
in August 2006), which contains 20 stores and a Progressive Supa IGA (formerly Action
Action Supermarkets
Action is a defunct Australian supermarket chain. Based in Perth, Western Australia, Action had 80 supermarkets across Western Australia, Queensland and New South Wales, and was one of the largest supermarket chains in Australia...
). Across Scarborough Beach Road is the Greater Union Megaplex. The northern part of the suburb also contains a small local shopping area in Morris Place. Opposite the Megacenter, an IKEA
IKEA
IKEA is a privately held, international home products company that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture such as beds and desks, appliances and home accessories. The company is the world's largest furniture retailer...
has been constructed, replacing the smaller store a kilometre away in the adjoining suburb of Osborne Park.
Innaloo's southern border with Woodlands
Woodlands, Western Australia
Woodlands is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Its Local Government Area is the City of Stirling and it is in the federal Division of Curtin.Many of the streets in Woodlands are named after trees, such as oak, elm, birch, sandalwood and willow....
hosts Perth's largest cinema complex, the 18-cinema Greater Union Megaplex Innaloo, which contains Gold Class cinemas, as well as an arcade with numerous restaurants and dining speciality outlets, including Sizzler
Sizzler
Sizzler is a United States-based restaurant chain with headquarters in Culver City, California. The chain serves steak, seafood, and salad , as well as similar items.-History:...
, Han's Cafe, Bollywood Resto Bar and Retro Betty's, and a game centre (centred on Timezone
Timezone (video arcades)
Timezone is a chain of amusement arcade centres owned by Australian company Leisure and Allied Industries, with stores in Australia, New Zealand, Vietnam, India, Indonesia, Singapore and the Philippines.- Powercard :...
). It started off life as an MGM drive-in in the 1950s, then was rebuilt by Greater Union in 1990 with 8 screens, then expanded to a Megaplex - the first in Western Australia - in 1996.
Transport
Innaloo is served by bus links to Stirling train stationStirling railway station, Perth
Stirling railway station is a Transperth train and bus interchange located northwest of Perth railway station in Western Australia, on the Joondalup Line.-History:...
on the Joondalup Line, including the 410, 411, 412, 421, 426 and the 98/99 CircleRoute
CircleRoute
The CircleRoute is a pair of suburban bus routes in Perth, Western Australia. Like all Perth bus routes, the buses are branded Transperth and operated by companies contracted by the Public Transport Authority. The routes are identical except for direction: 98 is clockwise, and 99 is anticlockwise...
, and the 423 and 425 along the Karrinyup Road boundary. Additionally, the 400 and 408 services link Scarborough and the Glendalough railway station along Innaloo's southern boundary. Innaloo's location next to the rail line makes it one of the best served areas for public transport in Perth.
Prior to the construction of the Stirling railway station as part of the Northern Suburbs Transit System
Northern Suburbs Transit System
The Northern Suburbs Transit System is the name given to the project initiated and funded by the Government of Western Australia to provide high-speed passenger rail services to the northern corridor of metropolitan Perth, the capital city of Western Australia...
, a possible deviation of the rail alignment was considered to directly service the suburb and it's shopping district including Westfield Innaloo
Westfield Innaloo
Westfield Innaloo is a major shopping centre in the northern suburbs of Perth, located approximately 8 km north-west of the CBD at the corner of Scarborough Beach Road and Ellen Stirling Boulevard in Innaloo...
. However, this idea was rejected by both the project and the public at large due to the significant cost, lack of identifiable benefits, and environmental impact grounds.
Politics
Innaloo is a mixed-wealth suburb with many "mortgage beltMortgage belt
The Mortgage belt is a term used in Australian politics to signify residential suburbs which have a high concentration of families mortgaging their homes....
" families, as well as many elderly voters. The Yuluma booth is among the northern suburbs' few genuinely marginal booths at federal level. However, they strongly support the Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
at state elections
Parliament of Western Australia
The Parliament of Western Australia consists of the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly . The Parliament sits at Parliament House in Harvest Terrace, Perth....
.