Yarrawonga has been one of regional Victoria’s fastest-growing communities over the last 25 years, with more than 2,500 new homes being built.
Before the 1990s, barring a few homes in River Road Yarrawonga, there were no homes in the big area bordered by River Road, Woods Road, the Murray Valley Highway and Botts Road – just a few businesses along the highway.
The vast majority of the approximate 200-hectare land was vacant land. But all that has changed, and how!
Along River Road, Woods Road and the Murray Valley Hwy, it’s fully built, with some 900 homes.
In that area, there has also been the construction of major facilities, including Permewans (now W B Hunter), Bentley-Woods Health and Aged Care, Denis Medical Clinic (since relocated), Sacred Heart Primary School, and now the Country Buddies Childcare and Kindergarten.
In the mid-1990s, the Botts farm alongside Lake Mulwala was 400 hectares of a prized beef property before it was sold and became the residential Silverwoods Estate, which also comprises a championship 18-hole golf course, ‘Black Bull’.
Black Bull Golf Course is now surrounded by some 650 new homes and 250 vacant residential blocks have been sold. Of those 250 blocks, 170 blocks are awaiting civil works to be completed then titles will be issued.
In 2020, Sebel Yarrawonga was opened and is a spectacular new addition to Silverwoods. Sebel Yarrawonga is a $48 million luxury international 4.5 star boutique hotel and apartments.
Also on the town’s eastern side is the fast-growing Glanmire Park Estate bordering Murray Valley Hwy and Woods Road, with over 300 hundred blocks of land already sold with many homes built or about to go under construction.
New over 50s lifestyle villages are also in the planning, with Glanmire Living boasting up to 200 new homes and Yarrawonga Lifestyle Village planning more than 100 new homes just off Hogans Road.
Wherever you look in Yarrawonga, there is building activity with some older homes being replaced, especially closer to the town’s centre.
There have been many other homes, organisations and commercial enterprises, including additional health care service aged care facilities Karana and Allawah, new or extensions to schools, the town’s first food outlets of McDonald’s and KFC, the Bunnings warehouse and more recently, a new Toyota Dealership. Supermarket chain Aldi is also on the way.
For much of at least the past 25 years, Yarrawonga would surely be the leading town in Victoria for a population of its size regarding building activity.
Even back in the late 1980s and the 1990s, Yarrawonga experienced intensive building activity from 1987 to 1989, 1993 to 1995 and from 2002 to 2004.
For example, over a 10-year period from 1995 to 2004, permits for 826 new homes were issued by Moira Shire Council.
Yarrawonga has held its own against the most progressive rural towns in Victoria and the Riverina according to retired Yarrawonga real estate agent Brian Keenan OAM.
The Yarrawonga Chronicle edition of November 27, 2019, included a story on the growth of Yarrawonga and Mulwala. Last week, the comments made at the time by local identity Brian Keenan OAM, who had 35 years as a real estate agent and served 16 years on Moira Shire Council, including a term as mayor in 2012/13.
Way ahead, but warning
Mr Keenan’s comments were, however, backed up with a warning. “We’re way ahead of the field on the average,” he said. “People responsible for getting Yarrawonga really going from the 1990s were Barry Donaghey around the lake area and Jim Lillis off the lake in the southern area.
“It’s a natural expansion of a world-wide trend for people to try to be near water and our water is aesthetically pleasing.
“Yarrawonga’s been wonderful. Nothing succeeds like success, as the foreshore was developed - the lake which is the keystone to all with water sport attractions, the Grey Nomads finding the town bringing property buyers here. Quite a percentage of sales are people finding Yarrawonga for the first time.
“I really believe we’ll see more housing all the way up to Bundalong and beyond to Rutherglen.”
If that type of housing expansion on productive agricultural land is eventuated, it will contribute to “a national disaster” as far as Mr Keenan is concerned. “We’ve got to feed the people,” he said.
Mulwala has been at the forefront of development throughout the Federation Council (formerly Corowa Shire) area, with more than 650 new tenements approved by the council since January 2000.
The new dwellings/tenements have been constructed throughout Mulwala, including the development of larger lifestyle blocks as well as smaller higher-density neighbourhood lots.
Significant new developments in the past 19 years have been substantial additions and/or refurbishments to many facilities, such as ClubMulwala, Mulwala Water Ski Club, Yarrawonga Mulwala Golf Club Resort and DC on Lake Caravan Park.
The Mulwala commercial precinct and Business Park (Industrial Estate) continue to grow, and there have been plenty of new homes.
Director Andrew Kennedy of Kennedy Builders Mulwala credits the influx of many new arrivals to Yarrawonga Mulwala to the prices of houses.
“l think it is to do with the good prices people get for their homes in Melbourne and moving to the great lifestyle here,” he said.
Mr Kennedy compared the twin-town’s building splurge over his 35 years with Kennedy Builders. “When I started my apprenticeship (1989) we used to build about five homes a year and now we build about 50 a year and do commercial work as well,” he said.
“I have seen Mulwala grow substantially since I started my apprenticeship, for example, the supermarket. For Mulwala to grow further we need to get more land developed for housing.”
Mulwala Progress Association President Robert Purtle OAM considers Mulwala to be in a league of its own regarding building activity for a similar size population.
“I can’t imagine what area with the same population as us has anywhere near the amount of building activity, especially new homes, over the last 25 years,” he said.
“With Mulwala’s employment (which includes Thales Australia and three licensed clubs) and the retail industry and much else in Yarrawonga, Yarrawonga and Mulwala complement each other perfectly, for the very proud town and communities.”
NSW Member for Albury Justin Clancy expects ongoing growth for communities like Yarrawonga and Mulwala that offer a great location and lifestyle.
“I see Yarrawonga Mulwala primed for not just growth over the next five to ten years but for ongoing growth over the longer term,” Mr Clancy said.
“But with that growth, what needs to underpin it is the investment in infrastructure, such as things like the water treatment plant in Mulwala, and even the civil infrastructure with the land development.
“I understand Federation Council has applied for federal funding to help develop parcels of land there. What’s front of mind, though, for many people, is a new Mulwala bridge.”
Mr Clancy said he met recently in parliament with the NSW Minister for Regional Transport and Roads, Jenny Aitchison, pushing for a new bridge and highlighting that Mulwala is a growing community that really needs infrastructure support.
“It was a constructive discussion, we need the three governments, the two state governments and the commonwealth to come together and work out their funding program over the next ten years for Murray River crossings.”
Mr Clancy also recognized the significant commitment from the Federal Government for the munitions factory as a key growth contributor but reiterated that the ongoing attraction to move to the twin towns will always be the lifestyle, the Murray River and Lake Mulwala along with the towns’ location to both the capital cities.
State Member for Ovens Valley Tim McCurdy has highlighted Yarrawonga as the fastest growing town in regional Victoria and the need for the government to spend more on its infrastructure and help further fund important services to keep up with its growth.
“Yarrawonga has over 800 houses being, or about to be, built, and yet the government refuses to spend any money on ensuring the infrastructure is in place to cope with such a substantial increase,” Mr McCurdy commented after the Victorian government handed down its budget last year.
“We need to fix the Belmore Street pedestrian crossings, we need to see the Green Route (on the new bridge) implemented and the preparatory works get under way, and we need to see stage 2 of the Yarrawonga P-12 College finished,” he said.