Balwyn

Balwyn Melbourne, Victoria
Population	15,312 (2006)
• Density
Postcode(s)	3103
Area	5.6 km2 (2.2 sq mi)
Location	10 km (6 mi) from Melbourne
LGA(s)	City of Boroondara
State electorate(s)	Kew, Box Hill
Federal division(s)	Kooyong
Suburbs around Balwyn: Kew East Balwyn North Mont Albert North Kew Balwyn Mont Albert North Hawthorn East Canterbury Mont Albert

Balwyn is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 10 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Boroondara. At the 2006 Census, Balwyn had a population of 15,312.

Named after a farm established on the hill overlooking Canterbury Gardens, it means home of the vine. The south west part of the suburb is known as Deepdene. It was coined from the Gaelic "Bal" and the saxon "wyn" which is why Andrew Murray called his house Balwyn.

Balwyn in the north is separated from Balwyn North by Belmore Road, is bounded in the west by Burke Road, in the south by an irregular line along Mont Albert Road, Northcote Avenue and Whitehorse Road, and in the east by a line some distance to the east of Union Road.

History

Deepdene common school.

The intersection of Whitehorse Road and Burke Road, showing the tram route 72 terminus.

Balwyn Post Office first opened on 26 August 1874 in a rural area, closed in 1894, then reopened in 1920.

The suburb developed in the post WWII boom and was populated by a mixture of professional and working class families, although it is now primarily professional and mercantile, this being the demographic that can afford the higher real estate prices. Consequently, higher real estate prices have formed a prominent part of the psycho-social makeup of Balwyn's inhabitants. The initial boom occurred along the Whitehorse Road tramline, which defined the working class Deepdene factory (such as the Wade handbag and the Jarvis-Walker fishing rod factories) and shop strip and the Balwyn shops around the intersection with Burke Road. South of the tramline was generally elite while the slopes down to the north was populated by aspiring middle classes, workers and frugal professionals such as teachers and bank managers. With Deepdene State School at its western extreme, it drew a mixed student population that contrasted with the student population of Balwyn High School located in the area that became known as North Balwyn, which was populated later than the rest of the suburb by a higher socio-economic group.

Apart from the significant religious establishments of the suburb, local almost village churches sprang up with the boom of young people post war, one example of which was the Deepdene Methodist Church. Now defunct, the church was a thriving focus for young people's fellowship, a scout troop, fundraising as well as mothers' and other groups that defined a viable neighbourhood. In addition to its social function in nurturing the development of young people given the opportunities of a scholastically elite school, an ever expanding employment market and the excellent public health regime of the era, the church was adopted by the Rev Dr A. H. Wood upon his retirement as Principal of the Methodist Ladies' College in Kew. Wood made an indelible contribution to the suburb through this role, and the effect remains evident in the 2000s in the lives of people he influenced at that time.

Today

Balwyn is also home to the exquisite Maranoa Gardens, a native garden developed by citizens. The suburb has been immortalised by the Skyhooks single named after the suburb, 'Balwyn Calling', while The Age newspaper described the suburb as "arguably Melbourne's most loved" whilst conceding "Balwyn has never, and will never, be called "a vibrant, exciting and influential suburb" . The music scene in Balwyn is starting to recover with the emergence of singer songwriter Edward "Woody" Pitney.

Sport

The suburb has an Australian Rules football team, The Balwyn Tigers, competing in the Eastern Football League.

2008 economic crisis

Because of the economic crisis of 2008, house prices in Melbourne's private school belt were hammered in the second half of 2008. The price of an average house in Balwyn dived 21.6 per cent to $956,000 over the three months to the end of December 2008. By comparison, median house prices across all Melbourne suburbs fell by 9.7 per cent in the year ending 2008.

Falling share prices forced many wealthy home owners in Melbourne's prestigious suburbs to sell their homes to cover share margin calls or because they had lost their jobs in the finance and banking sectors. According to one analyst, property prices in Melbourne's wealthy inner-city suburbs tend to be very closely aligned to the state of global and domestic share markets.

Notable residents

• Steve Hooker – world-famous pole vaulter, grew up in Balwyn.

See also

• City of Camberwell - the former local government area of which Balwyn was a part.

External links

• Australian Places - Balwyn & Balwyn North
• Balwyn Cricket Club