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Research

Canberra CBD Limited has a number of research objectives. Our goal is to provide City Centre stakeholders with information that increases their understanding of the Centre’s customer base.

Canberra CBD Limited recently commissioned Crosby Textor to conduct a major research study.

The research objectives were to:

• assess impressions of the CBD amongst key audiences and the reasons underpinning them
• identify the opportunities for and barriers to greater utilisation of Canberra CBD as a commercial/lifestyle destination, and
• assess perceptions of Canberra CBD Limited and identify the priorities for the company.

A summary of the findings across the key audiences follows:

CBD Users – general public

Parking (access and value) is the most important attribute of a shopping or business precinct with four out of five Canberrans rating its importance 8 out of 10 or higher.

More than two-thirds want a shopping precinct that is free of people loitering or harassing passers-by for money or cigarettes (69% rated this at 8/10 or higher). A wide variety of shops and eating places (68% rated 8/10 or higher) and clean buildings and footpaths are also very important (66% rated 8/10 or higher).

On average, one quarter (25%) of the Canberra region community visit the Canberra CBD every week and nearly two-thirds (62%) visit the CBD at least once a month.

Canberra City visitors are more satisfied with their visit overall than other centres. One in five is (21%) “extremely satisfied” compared with 12 per cent for Fyshwick, 12 per cent for Belconnen and 14 per cent for Woden.

More than half of the visitors (57%) are “extremely” or “very satisfied” with the City compared to 51 per cent for Woden, 47 per cent for Belconnen and 46 per cent for Fyshwick.

Shopping, eating out and being out with friends are the main reasons the community would visit the Canberra CBD.

CBD Community – residents and workers

CBD residents and workers see the key advantages of living in the city as convenience and amenity with choices for shopping and food, as well as a wide choice of venues for entertainment.

The perceived high level of convenience and amenity is sufficient (for now) to overcome a range of downsides, including -

• lack of convenient, reliable public transport and the availability and cost of parking
• drug-dealing and drunkenness and resultant fighting/screaming, broken glass and vomit.

Workers see the ‘real’ CBD on a daily basis and are more critical of some particular aspects of the environment and ambience. They particularly notice the bird droppings from pigeons and magpies, both in their pedestrian movements and when they want to have a seat somewhere to eat lunch. They see and experience menacing young people pestering passers-by for money or cigarettes (in Garema Place mostly). They are concerned about their own personal security after hours, with particular respect to drunks and fighting and the fact that they believe there is insufficient lighting where they need it. They also note the lack of (weather) shelter when walking around the CBD.

CBD workers generally feel the CBD is a more ‘chic and modern’ location to work and has a more upmarket feel than other areas, but the location is not a particular driver in choice of job.

Business owners

Business owners/managers locate in the CBD for customer traffic, the critical mass of businesses and prestige, which attracts clients and customers prepared to ‘spend more’.

The primary reasons businesses locate to and stay located in the CBD are:

• customer traffic flow is seen to be better than other centres
• critical mass of retailers, shops, restaurants, etc, more attractive to potential customers
• better class of client/customer (and ability to generate better margins).

CBD property owners

Building owners see the CBD as offering critical mass and prestige/quality. These factors, along with the geographically central location, are seen to contribute to making the CBD attractive for tenants and their clients/customers alike.

CBD building owners are overwhelmingly supportive of the new developments that have been taking place in the CBD recently. The new City West and new Acton developments rate particular mention. The Canberra Centre extension also earns spontaneous approval.

As enthusiastic as they are overall about the new developments, CBD building owners are also quite critical of the lack of action they see in some areas of the city. Like every other stakeholder group, parking is an issue for building owners because it is an issue for their tenants, their tenants’ staff and their tenants’ customers. The parking issue is exacerbated by the perceived lack of an efficient, reliable public transport system to carry workers and customers to and from the CBD.

A further challenge lies in Government regulation (especially with respect to planning) which is seen to be inhibiting both new development and the upgrading of existing stock.

Along with the benefits of having a building in the CBD, there are also recognised downsides for building owners and their tenants: cleaning and vandalism, particularly graffiti, is felt to be a constant problem; the incidence of alcohol-related behaviour and other anti-social or illegal activity is considered to be greater in the CBD than other centres.

The role of Canberra CBD Limited

Many Canberra CBD building owners and agents believe there are positive reasons for an organisation such as Canberra CBD Limited to exist. They believe that having a coordinated central body where they can interact with other CBD property owners and express their concerns will give them a greater voice with Government, more quickly and strategically resolve issues and help renew the CBD.

Building owners generally expect Canberra CBD Ltd to be working to make the city more vibrant and feel safer. This they believe will ultimately attract more people.

Cleaning is also seen by building owners as germane to improving the reputation of the CBD. Beyond physical improvements, advocacy on behalf of CBD building owners collectively is seen as a primary role for Canberra CBD Limited. There is strong recognition that the organisation has a limited budget and cannot possibly achieve all the CBD infrastructure improvements that are needed/desired by building owners. Therefore, they think it is essential that the organisation act as an agitator to achieve greater focus on and funding for the CBD from Government.

Building owners will be looking for Canberra CBD to get tangible, visible “runs on the board” to demonstrate its worth. Critical to demonstrating the organisation’s effectiveness will be its communications, particularly with building owners (and potentially business owners) more broadly, not just members.

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