Daytime activity in a residential community

Do 'classic residential neighbourhoods' still exist? Given the increasing ease of working from home, as well as running small businesses from non-conventional spaces (ie; home!) is it possible the concept of 'dormitory suburbs' is done and dusted?

The Property Council of Australia recently asked our CEO, Jessica Christiansen-Franks, to speak at their "Great Australian Dream" event, about the changing trends in local lifestyle, and how this may shape the places we choose to live. And in examining the suburbs of Melbourne with our temporal activity hotspots data we found something fascinating...

Point Cook, a relatively new residential suburb in Melbourne's outer southwest, is busier on weekdays than weekends. When we look at the hotspots of visitor activity across Point Cook (ie the places people 'dwell' for 15 mins or more outside their own homes), the data was clear - weekday activity levels were higher than weekend activity. But this is the REVERSE of what Urban Design training tells us to expect in a 'classic residential suburb'. Shouldn't Point Cook be relatively quiet on weekdays, and light up on weekends, when all the workers are home and hanging out?

The amenities data holds the answer to this question. It wasn't surprising to see that the highest activity locations all week long were the various retail centres - packed with amenity. But what was unexpected, was the quantity of business operators that exist right across the residential blocks... From driving schools to landscapers, and tailors to maths tutors, the residential streets of Point Cook are an eclectic ecosystem of businesses operating from people's homes, illustrating Point Cook's credentials as a precinct, with no 'dormitory' in sight!

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