A BRISBANE southside suburb had been so lacking in basic amenities that locals rejoiced when their first stand-alone toilet block was opened.
Now a Darra shopkeeper says it’s time for the council to invest more in the suburb and give the main street some TLC.
Darra, some 14km from the CBD, is now major public transport hub, following on from a railway station upgrade seven years ago, which included the addition of a park ‘n’ ride facility for 246 cars.
The spruced-up station allows direct pedestrian access to the platform off Railway Pde and the upgrade, along with increased express services, has led to weekday commuters swarming from surrounding suburbs.
One local trader said the Brisbane City Council should now, with so many travellers, double down and make the shopping precinct on Railway Pde more attractive to the eye.
“The station was upgraded a few years ago and it’s made a huge difference,” said baker Van Nguyen who owns The Phamily StrEAT Kitchen on Railway Parade.
“We also have an express train and people from surrounding suburbs come here to catch a train and it makes Darra a transit centre.
“It has helped the area but we now have to dress this street up. We need to make it a drawcard and make it upmarket a bit,” Mr Nguyen said.
Mr Nguyen’s assessment may be on the money but things move slowly in Darra.
It was only in May that the first stand-alone toilet facility in Darra opened in the Ducie St Park.
Up until then Darra Community Group president Brad Butcher said if “nature called” children had to “find a tree or pack up and head home”.
“There are absolutely no public toilets anywhere,” the father of four told The Courier-Mail back in December.
Local councillor Matthew Bourke said there are plans to beautify Railway Pde but there is a lot of work to be done.
“Darra Train Station is a major interchange station for the Ipswich and Springfield lines, attracting commuters from far and wide, but parking and toilet facilities for the station are lacking and I urge the State Government to invest money into these important facilities to ease pressure on our local streets and businesses,’ Mr Bourke said.
Mr Nguyen is a qualified pharmacist but gave it away to concentrate on being a baker and making his ‘multicultural’ eatery a success.
“We will have Vietnamese cuisine but we want to have Italian and Thai as well as being a bakery,” he said.
Known for its high migrant population, Census data shows almost 16 per cent of the Darra population were born in Vietnam, and Brisbanites flock from far and wide to sample traditional cuisine here.
Not far away from StrEAT Kitchen, at the end of Darra Station Rd, near the Ipswich Motorway, an unassuming market, Bac Thein, is situated in a rundown warehouse.
Fruit and vegetables are spread across trestle tables while at the rear is a separate room stocked with fresh fish, including mullet, snapper and eel, sitting on deep trays of ice.
The business is owned by Dat Vu and his son, who serves behind the counter.
Mr Vu, a civil engineer, has had the market for more than 15 years, having started out selling Vietnamese groceries under his mother’s home in Wacol.
He’s proud of his son working in his business but believes there are fewer Vietnamese children choosing to follow in the small business footsteps of their parents.
“I think the third generation are very well educated and are choosing more professional careers,” Mr Vu said.
“They still remain very close with their families and my son works here, but they are more professional now.”
Mr Vu’s parents came out to Australia as refugees in 1975 and settled in Wacol before later moving to Darra, which then had a major cement works.
Back then Darra was cheap real estate. In 1998, the average price of a house in the suburb was only $75,500.
Today, the cement factory has long ceased operations, and a house in Darra will set you back a median $500,000.
“The Vietnamese were not even bothered by the cement works. They still lived around here,” Mr Vu said.
“My parents came out and moved here because they would rather buy the property than lease it and land was cheaper here years ago.
“When we came here, my mum said ‘it was heaven on earth’ because no one bother you anymore or harass you.
“The biggest change around here has been the price of your house. It’s hard to buy anything under $500,000.”
Nanette Lilley Real Estate agent Doug May said Darra had a surplus of subdividable blocks and that had helped push the property prices up.
He said it had been a popular suburb in recent years for first home buyers but that’s fading fast.
“We’ve seen the median rise 47.5 per cent since 2014,” Mr May said.
“It’s a result of the natural progression of the western corridor and the train line.
“Oxley has moved quite considerably in recent years and it’s only natural it (sales) move out to the next suburb along which is Darra and most blocks in Darra are subdividable.”
Originally Published: http://www.couriermail.com.au