Jamison Centre, Australian Capital Territory
Encyclopedia
Jamison Centre is a designated group centre located in the Canberra
suburb of Macquarie
. It services the suburbs of Macquarie
, Aranda
, Bruce
, Cook
, Page
and Weetangera
. Places nearby include the West Belconnen Rugby Club and the Big Splash Waterpark.
Jamison Centre is serviced by four ACTION
bus routes (10, 705, 749, 942), all of which depart from the main Belconnen interchange. It is also easily accessible by road from Belconnen Way
and Bindubi Street.
The outdoor Belconnen Trash'n'Treasure Market is held every Sunday morning in the Jamison Centre car park. This is one of Canberra
's larger outdoor markets, and is operated by the Rotary Club
of Belconnen with assistance from the Rotary Clubs of Ginninderra, Hall and Woden.
district, preceding the Belconnen Town Centre
by nearly a decade. It was named after Thomas Jamison
(1752/53–1811), a First Fleet
surgeon and prominent landowner, government official and mercantile trader of the colonial era. Initially, the Jamison Centre was a major commercial area, but it soon began to suffer from the growth of a centrally situated town hub, particularly when the federal government built a major shopping precinct which was later sold to The Westfield Group
and is now known as Westfield Belconnen
. For many years the Jamison Centre played a significant role in servicing the adjacent area, but decreased in importance and became increasingly neglected.
The decline continued until 2000, when the Humphries
government and the private owners of the centre commissioned a master plan to turn the area around. After community consultation, several major issues such as building elevation, access, safety and a lack of meeting places, were noted. The final plan, released in 2002, mapped out a number of methods of achieving this, including improving traffic flow and building new shops and restaurants facing the adjacent streets. With the approval of $8.2m of government funding, a major refurbishment began in January 2006, with most major work completed by early 2008. Though the government provided assurances that the centre would remain open throughout the process, much of the complex was vacant for some time with many long term retailers moving to temporary locations nearby.
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
suburb of Macquarie
Macquarie, Australian Capital Territory
Macquarie is a suburb of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia. Macquarie was gazetted as a division on 22 June 1967 in recognition of Major-General Lachlan Macquarie, a former Governor of New South Wales. Streets in Macquarie are named after contemporaries of Governor...
. It services the suburbs of Macquarie
Macquarie, Australian Capital Territory
Macquarie is a suburb of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia. Macquarie was gazetted as a division on 22 June 1967 in recognition of Major-General Lachlan Macquarie, a former Governor of New South Wales. Streets in Macquarie are named after contemporaries of Governor...
, Aranda
Aranda, Australian Capital Territory
Aranda is a suburb in the Canberra district of Belconnen. It is the eastern most suburb in Belconnen, located at the western foot of Black Mountain. Bounded on two sides by nature park, the suburb is characterised by its bush setting...
, Bruce
Bruce, Australian Capital Territory
Bruce is a suburb of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia. Bruce was gazetted as a division on 6 June 1968 in recognition of Viscount Stanley Melbourne Bruce, the first Chancellor of the Australian National University and eighth Prime Minister of Australia. S. M. Bruce served as...
, Cook
Cook, Australian Capital Territory
Cook is a suburb of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia. Cook is in the district of Belconnen. On Census night 2006, Cook had a population of 2,817 people....
, Page
Page, Australian Capital Territory
Page is a suburb of Canberra, in the district of Belconnen. The suburb is named in honour of Sir Earle Page, a former Prime Minister. Streets in Page are named in honour of Australian scientists...
and Weetangera
Weetangera, Australian Capital Territory
Weetangera is a suburb in the Canberra, Australia district of Belconnen.It is next to the suburbs of Hawker, Page and Macquarie. The Canberra Nature Park of The Pinnacle Nature Reserve borders it to the south across Springvale Drive. It has a primary school, Weetangera primary, and Weetangera...
. Places nearby include the West Belconnen Rugby Club and the Big Splash Waterpark.
Jamison Centre is serviced by four ACTION
ACTION
ACTION is a public bus service operating in Canberra, ACT, Australia. It is operated by the ACT Department of Territory and Municipal Services...
bus routes (10, 705, 749, 942), all of which depart from the main Belconnen interchange. It is also easily accessible by road from Belconnen Way
Belconnen Way, Canberra
Belconnen Way is a major road in Canberra, Australia. It connects William Hovell Drive with Barry Drive and Fairfax Street, passing Belconnen Town Centre. It provides both an alternate route to Civic via Barry Drive and the primary means of getting to and from the Belconnen Town Center...
and Bindubi Street.
The outdoor Belconnen Trash'n'Treasure Market is held every Sunday morning in the Jamison Centre car park. This is one of Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
's larger outdoor markets, and is operated by the Rotary Club
Rotary International
Rotary International is an organization of service clubs known as Rotary Clubs located all over the world. The stated purpose of the organization is to bring together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help...
of Belconnen with assistance from the Rotary Clubs of Ginninderra, Hall and Woden.
History
Built in 1969, Jamison Centre was the first shopping development in the BelconnenBelconnen
Belconnen is a district of Canberra, the capital city of Australia, comprising 25 suburbs with 29,900 dwellings housing 82,247 people of the 311,518 people in the Australian Capital Territory ....
district, preceding the Belconnen Town Centre
Belconnen Town Centre
Belconnen Town Centre is located in the suburb of Belconnen on the south-western shore of Lake Ginninderra in Canberra, Australia. It is the town centre for the Belconnen district....
by nearly a decade. It was named after Thomas Jamison
Thomas Jamison
Thomas Jamison was a prominent surgeon, government official, mercantile trader and land owner of Sydney, Australia. Jamison was also a member of the First Fleet expedition of 11 ships which founded the Australian colony of New South Wales in 1788...
(1752/53–1811), a First Fleet
First Fleet
The First Fleet is the name given to the eleven ships which sailed from Great Britain on 13 May 1787 with about 1,487 people, including 778 convicts , to establish the first European colony in Australia, in the region which Captain Cook had named New South Wales. The fleet was led by Captain ...
surgeon and prominent landowner, government official and mercantile trader of the colonial era. Initially, the Jamison Centre was a major commercial area, but it soon began to suffer from the growth of a centrally situated town hub, particularly when the federal government built a major shopping precinct which was later sold to The Westfield Group
The Westfield Group
The Westfield Group is an Australian shopping centre group undertaking ownership, development, design, construction, funds/asset management, property management, leasing and marketing activities...
and is now known as Westfield Belconnen
Westfield Belconnen
Westfield Belconnen, also known colloquially as "Belconnen Mall", is managed by Westfield Group and located in the Canberra suburb of Belconnen, Australia. The shopping centre is one of the largest in Canberra, featuring around 270 specialty stores....
. For many years the Jamison Centre played a significant role in servicing the adjacent area, but decreased in importance and became increasingly neglected.
The decline continued until 2000, when the Humphries
Gary Humphries
Gary John Joseph Humphries has been a member of the Australian Senate representing the Australian Capital Territory for the Liberal Party of Australia since 2003...
government and the private owners of the centre commissioned a master plan to turn the area around. After community consultation, several major issues such as building elevation, access, safety and a lack of meeting places, were noted. The final plan, released in 2002, mapped out a number of methods of achieving this, including improving traffic flow and building new shops and restaurants facing the adjacent streets. With the approval of $8.2m of government funding, a major refurbishment began in January 2006, with most major work completed by early 2008. Though the government provided assurances that the centre would remain open throughout the process, much of the complex was vacant for some time with many long term retailers moving to temporary locations nearby.