Maude St redevelopment gets tick of approval from shoppers

By Murray Silby

Dec 12, 2022

Shepparton’s $17 million Maude St redevelopment, which has been lauded by the Greater Shepparton City Council, Shepparton Chamber of Commerce and Industry and politicians alike as being a great boon to the CBD, is now open, but what do the shoppers and shop keepers think?

Do they welcome the addition of one-way 20 km/h traffic between Fryers St and High St, ending the block’s days as a mall?

The News parked the car and walked about to find out.

Leanne Mow, Bendigo

“It’s (Bendigo mall) worse. This is a great idea. Opening it back up is fantastic. The mall is full of shops compared to Bendigo, it's empty. Totally. So many empty shops in Bendigo. It's crazy. So this is an awesome idea. I think extra parking, flow through and plenty of shops.”

Lenni Pennisi, Lou’s Shoe Repairs in Maude St

“Overall happy with the whole build. It ran very smoothly I think, overall. We look forward to seeing cars coming through. It's good. It looks good. I'm glad that they've changed the (parking) time limit to an hour; there was a 30-minute time limit, but they’ve lifted it up to an hour. I think it looks more vibrant and with the cars introduced, will have a different feel to it.”

‘It’s much better’: Ashleigh Fahey, from Benalla. Photo by Murray Silby

Ashleigh Fahey, Benalla

“It's a very good upgrade. Very modern, Melbourne-ish. (It was) very outdated so to come over, this is the first time I've seen it completed, it's much better.”

Modern look: Connor Campbell, from Shepparton. Photo by Murray Silby

Connor Campbell, Shepparton

“It looks very nice, to be honest, and I think it's going to bring a lot more shoppers into the mall and I think it'll bring more businesses to life as well. I think it's more updated. So it looks more modern and I think you've got Fryers St as well up here with all the coffees and everything like that and just off to the edge here is a great spot. Everyone can have a walk down, have a shop. Go for coffee, some lunch. I think Shepp’s got a vibe. It's going to be buzzing again.”

Don Martin, Katandra West

“Absolutely brilliant compared to before. Should have been done years ago. It’s going to bring the cars and people back to the mall, or what was the mall, and make those shopkeepers a bit happier I’d reckon by a long way. You get used to traffic. That's a minor thing because it’s only going one way anyway.”