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Midland Local Area

The Midland local area is located approximately 16km north-east of the Perth CBD and is the gateway to regional Western Australia. The Midland local area comprises the localities of:

Midland
Viveash
Woodbridge
Midvale (part – within the City of Swan)
Bellevue, Koongamia; and
Middle Swan (part – south of the Roe Highway).

The Midland local area is made up of a mix of uses including commercial and business, residential, health care, industrial, community, open space and recreation. It also includes land currently controlled by Development WA (previously Metropolitan Redevelopment Authority). The Midland central business district (CBD) is recognised as a Strategic Metropolitan Centre servicing the eastern metropolitan area of Perth.

The Midland Local Area Plan (Version 2) was adopted on August 25, 2021. The plan outlines the community's priorities, which are determined by the feedback received throughout the consultation period.

The following map indicates what is being done in the area in support of these priorities, which will be updated annually for the community.

Priorities Map

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The priorities located outside the map area relate to the developments that are implemented across the local area.

Annual Updates 2020-21

Priority	City of Swan Actions and Developments
Priority 1: Improve community safety and antisocial behaviour in the Midland town centre	The consultation results show that the community is concerned with public safety in Midland town centre. The City has a close working relationship with the Midland Police and bordering Local Governments to jointly address crime. The City will be reviewing the Community Safety Plan, which determines the City’s direction for community safety and looks at the City’s role as a service provider, in partnerships and as an advocate for the community. Feedback from the consultation highlights that the community has concerns with antisocial behaviour in Midland town centre. The review of the Community Safety Plan will investigate strategies that the City can implement to make the community feel safer.
Priority 2: Ensure Midland has public open space that caters for the community	The City is investing in the public open space and recreational facilities in the Midland Local Area and has identified this as a key priority in the City’s 20/21 Corporate Business Plan. The City completed Stage 1 of Weeip Park in 2020 which included a grassed space and a dedicated youth zone including shade sails, a climbing wall, basketball hoop and landscaping. Stage 2 is underway and will complete the play area with cubby houses, a slide tower, wetland play area, climbing equipment and toddler’s safe play space. The park recognises Midland’s history and heritage through public art and interpretative elements with over 650 trees planted. The City of Swan completed stage 1 of a new outdoor recreation space at Lot 300, Gray Drive, Midvale which includes the delivery of a skate park. Swan Active Midland is going through an extensive $16 million refurbishment. Construction will commence in August 2021 and the refurbishment is expected to be completed in 2023. The following assets are scheduled for upgrades or replacements within the lifetime of this LAP (subject to funding): Holmesdale Park, Woodbridge Ron Jose Pavilion, Midland Viveash Park, Viveash Lloyd Penn Park, Koongamia Koolbardie Park, Midland
Priority 3: Facilitate the retention of trees, bushland and improve Midland's connection to the Swan and Helena River	The City encourages the retention of existing trees, native bushland and the protection of the rivers where appropriate. The City has prepared a draft Urban Forest Plan as a response to the loss of tree canopy as clearing of vegetation increases with continued development. This Plan seeks to provide healthy and diverse landscaping on public and private land, supporting biodiversity, preserving natural amenity and protecting valuable natural plant resources as the region develops. It is recognised in the City’s 20/21 Corporate Business Plan that it is a priority to increase canopy cover in the Midland Local Area. The portion of the Helena River in the Midland local area is maintained by the Lower Helena Association (formed in 2011) who undertake on-ground operations including weed control, native planting and water quality improvement planting (Lower Helena Association Inc, 2018). Actions are guided by the Helena River Catchment Group Action Plan 2012 – 2022 (Eastern Hills Catchment Management Program, 2014). The condition of the foreshore is being monitored along John George Walk Trail, Reg Bond Reserve, Swan Regional River Park, Ray Marshall Park and Woodbridge foreshore, with hotspots identified for on-going monitoring. Wangalla Brook in Koongamia is currently part of a five year foreshore restoration and revegetation project, with works having commenced at the western end. Unfortunately a fire last summer has caused a setback but the project is continuing including in upstream areas of the Brook.
Priority 4: Promote and protect Midland's heritage	The City has a Local Heritage Survey and Heritage List which categorises properties with heritage value. The City is currently reviewing 36 properties across the Midland Local Area which were nominated for the Local Heritage Survey in 2020. A full review of the Local Heritage Survey is scheduled to be undertake in 21/22. The protection of heritage assets is identified a priority under the City’s 20/21 Corporate Business Plan. Midland is a Strategic Metropolitan Centre which services the local and wider community including a rural catchment. Midland is undergoing a process of change through the Midland Activity Centre Structure Plan, draft Midland Design Guidelines, and Development WA area (formally Metropolitan Redevelopment Authority). These documents acknowledge and highlight the history of Midland and how this needs to be incorporated into new development. The progression of these documents are included in the 20/21 Corporate Business Plan. The City of Swan acknowledges the Wadjuk-Noongar people as the traditional custodians of the land and their connection to land and community. The City recognises the significance of their cultural heritage, beliefs and relationship with the land. The City has created a draft Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP). The RAP will formalise a commitment between the City and the Wadjuk-Noongar and other Indigenous peoples living and working in Swan. Developing the RAP enables the City to develop greater cultural awareness and professional development practices that will strengthen relationships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander stakeholders, and ensure more effective and relevant service delivery to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and communities.
Priority 5: Improve traffic safety and congestion	The City will continue to monitor roads and intersections in regards to traffic safety. Traffic flow and parking is a priority for the Midland Local Area in the City’s 20/21 Corporate Business Plan. The Midland Access and Parking Strategy was adopted by Council in 2013 following approximately four years of investigation and consultation. The Strategy is a broad document that sets parameters and actions to improve access, regulate parking, and move to a more sustainable situation. The primary objective of the Strategy is a focus on customer parking in the Midland area to support the local business economy. Generally, on-street parking is provided with restrictions i.e. time limited to encourage turnover and discourage longer term parking. On-street parking in close proximity to businesses should be prioritised for customer parking. There are several planned infrastructure upgrades in the Midland Local Area which will help with traffic safety and congestion: Main Roads is planning the Orange Route Lloyd Street Extension Morrison Road widening (subject to Council decision) Roe Highway Interchange at Morrison Road (part of the City’s 20/21 Advocacy Priorities) There are several known hotspots which the City is investigating: Clayton Street, Midland The intersection of Toodyay and Lloyd will be investigated and upgraded as required to improve performance and safety of the intersection (subject to funding). The consultation identified speeding as a prominent issue for the Midland Local area. Speeding is a widespread problem across the City and Perth Metro area, and traffic calming incurs a high cost and can divert the issue to other streets in the area. Enforcement is the most appropriate action to mitigate inappropriate driver behaviour. Where the results of traffic counts indicate excessive speeding, the City will report these locations to the Police. The City generally does not install traffic calming devices.
Priority 6: Ensure there are adequate community services	Midland has a diverse community which has a variety of needs. The City’s services have recently been affected by Covid-19. Homelessness was identified as a concern in the consultation. In May 2019, prior to the COVID pandemic, the City of Swan partnered with Indigo Junction and RUAH for Connections Week to survey people who are experiencing homelessness in Midland. This survey identified that 149 people are experiencing homelessness in Midland including 52 children. It was identified that families make up 27% of Midland’s homeless compared to just 2% in Perth and 7% in Fremantle. Of the families identified in Midland, 92% are Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander. At the November 2020 Council meeting, the Council resolved to approved the CEO to draft a joint funding submission with Indigo Junction to the State Government for outreach program. The Swan City Youth Service (SCYS) in Midland is a Not-for-Profit (NFP) organisation supported by the City and other tiers of government that operates as a one-stop-shop for young people aged 12 to 25 years. The SCYS offers a range of educational, recreational, life skills, and art and music programs. A variety of services are offered including drug and alcohol counselling, mental health support, weekly medical clinics, assistance with finding accommodation and accessing Centrelink or any other services required. Swan Active and Midland Library also run programs and initiatives for young people throughout the year and particularly during school holidays. The City also facilitates drop in services within a 2km radius of Middle Swan at SCYS, RISE youth, PCYC and Our Place LGBTIQA+. Community Care Services offers a variety of support services designed to assist eligible clients who are frail aged or living with dementia, and their carers. The City also provides the Active Seniors Program at Swan Active in Midland and programs at Midland Library, that are inclusive and welcoming across all cohorts. The Midland Seniors Network was recently started by the City and includes representation by the Swan District Senior Citizens; Seniors of Swan, Midland Probus Club, The Rotary Club of Midland, Swan Districts Lions Club, and Country Women’s Association (CWA) – Midland Branch. This network is aimed at identifying critical concerns relating to seniors in the area. There are several aged care opportunities either approved or in the process including the rezoning of the former Swan Districts Hospital site and Elvire Chalets. The City coordinates the East Metropolitan Multicultural Network (EMMN), which engages with CaLD communities and relevant agencies in the area to promote service access and equity. A lot of these services are facilitated by the volunteer community in the City. The City adopted the amended City of Swan Volunteer Plan 2020-2025 at the September 2020 Council meeting.
Priority 7: Facilitate streetscape improvements	The City has planned streetscape improvements such as tree planting, lighting and public art. A Midland street lighting audit was undertaken in 2014 and the City is rolling out upgrades. The City continues to roll out improvements which include the following (subject to funding): Ferguson Street, Middle Swan, Great Northern Highway, Midland and Elgee Road, Midland The City has a tree planting program where verge trees will be planted at the request of the adjacent resident if they commit to watering initially to establish the tree. The City has also prepared the draft Urban Forest Strategy in response to a loss of trees across the City. Midland has been identified as a priority and the City is currently exploring options to increase the canopy cover. The Urban Forest Plan was advertised in May 2021. The City has undertaken a coordinated street tree planting program in Bellevue in 2020/21, in accordance with the Bellevue Landscaping Masterplan which was an action of the Bellevue East Land Use Study. The City has planted 133 street trees on the verges in Bellevue. It is expected that Metronet will undertake some streetscaping improvements around the new station between Cale and Helena Street. The Public Art contributions from development applications have been reserved in a Public Art Fund. The Public Art funds in the Midland Local Area have been committed to a variety of murals in the Midland CBD and as functional elements in playspace renewals. The City is now forming a Public Art Strategy to highlight key opportunities throughout the City and will consider requests as part of this process. The feedback received in the community consultation included requests for entry statements in the Midland Local Area. Many of the suggested locations were on Main Roads land, or land that will be affect by major scheduled infrastructure. At this time it is not a priority for the City but this can be reconsidered once the infrastructure upgrades are completed.
Priority 8: Create a vibrant place through place activation, community events and community consultation	The consultation results show that the community would like to see place activation projects and community events. The City’s Place Stakeholder Officers, Community Development officers and Youth Officers work with the community to activate the Midland local area. The City supports the Midland Markets which are now located in the City of Swan and Ladgate carpark on Morrison Road. The community has asked for more investment into the façades of the shops, specifically on Great Northern Highway. These shops are privately owned, however the City does provide support to business owners in other ways such as training on how to set up or expand a business, identifying investment and how to improve a business plan. The City is working on a Midland Investment Strategy in 20/21, which will prioritise how the City can encourage investment in the Midland Town Centre. Furthermore, Action 4 from the City’s Economic Development Strategy, states that a brand and marketing strategy for Midland will be developed to attract more business and household investment. This branding strategy will be investigated in 2021. Midland is a Strategic Metropolitan Centre and policies have been put in place to facilitate redevelopment of areas to ensure Midland is catering not just for the local community but for the wider eastern metro catchment. The City acknowledges that will require changes to the Midland streetscape and requires extensive consultation with the community. The City is committed to better engagement with the Midland community with regards to matters of policy and development as outline in the 20/21 Corporate Business Plan.
Priority 9: Facilitate cycle and public transport options	The City’s Cycle Network Plan has identified two priorities for Midland: Stratton to Midland Link: Infrastructure upgrades aiming to improve the cycling link from Stratton to Midland, which includes shared path upgrades on Lewis Jones Cross, a new Toodyay Road bicycle-only path, Lloyd Street shared path upgrade, and improvement to on-road cycling along Templeman Place, The Crescent and Cale Street. Viveash - Woodbridge – Midland Cycling Link Improvement: Improvement to cycling link from the John George Trail along the Swan River foreshore in Viveash to Woodbridge Station and the Midland Rail Principle Shared Path. Proposed improvement includes constructing a new shared path along First Avenue and providing a crossing facility at the intersection of Great Eastern Highway and First Avenue. The State Government and Metronet have plans to relocate the Midland Station to Cale Street to bring it closer to the heart of the Midland Town Centre. The new location will improve connections to Midland Gate Shopping Centre, Midland Health Campus and New Junction.
Priority 10: Review the interface between residential and other zones	The City will be reviewing the Local Planning Scheme in 21/22 which will review zones in the City and the permitted uses. The consultation raised concerns from the Bellevue community that there are land use conflicts between the residents and industrial area. The City initiated the Bellevue East Land Use Study (BELUS) on the 14th August 2013 in response to community concerns with the encroachment and expansion of industrial and commercial developments within the existing predominantly residential neighbourhood. The City is currently reviewing the 70 recommendations in the Bellevue East Land Use Study and presenting the results to Council at the April 2021 council meeting with recommendations to initiate several scheme amendments.

Midland area profile

The Midland local area includes the suburbs of Koongamia, Midland, Viveash and Woodbridge, the southern part of Middle Swan, and parts of Midvale and Bellevue.

Located 20 kilometres north east of the Perth CBD, it is the gateway to regional Western Australia with the Great Eastern Highway, Great Northern Highway and the Midland passenger and freight rail lines all leading into Midland. The catchment area for Midland extends far beyond the City of Swan's boundaries and includes the Perth Hills, Chittering, Gingin, the Wheatbelt and the Avon Valley, all contributing to the large customer catchment and employee base. The area is an established mixed-use area and includes industrial, commercial and residential land uses.

Settlement of the area dates from 1829 when the first land grant was made. The township of Midland grew around the railway station, quickly becoming the commercial and administrative centre of the City of Swan. Significant development occurred primarily in the post-war years, aided by construction of public housing in Koongamia in the 1950s and the development of Viveash in the 1960s.

The Midland local area includes the Midland Redevelopment Area, a 256 hectare area of land assigned for mixed-use development including housing and apartments, cafes, restaurants and retail shops. The redevelopment project is expected to inject more than $1.2 billion into the local economy over the next 20 years and create around 7,500 jobs. Major facilities include the State's largest police complex with a communications centre, forensics and traffic operations, a GP Super Clinic and a new 300+ bed hospital which opened its doors to patients in November, 2015.

At the time of the 2016 Census, the Midland local area had a population of approximately 13,000 persons and more than 6,500 dwellings. More than 20% of the population are aged less than 20 years, 51% are aged between 20 and 54 years of age, 27% are aged over 55 and of those, 11% are 70 years of age or more.

Nearly 60% of residents in the Midland local area are Australian born, 30% were born overseas and of those, 17% come from non-English speaking backgrounds. After English, the most common languages spoken at home are Filipino/Tagalog, Italian and Malayalam.

Approximately 54% of homes in the Midland local area are family households of which 34% are households with children. Almost 50% of homes are owned outright or with a mortgage and 33% of homes are privately rented.

The Midland Local Area Plan was endorsed by Council on December 3, 2014.