In collaboration with Sprout Landscape Architecture, JOC Consulting was recently commissioned by Penrith City Council to develop a ‘palette’ of urban interventions for an aged retail strip at Day Street, Colyton.
The project formed part of a pilot program, Local Charm: placemaking with neighbourhood shopping centres. The pilot aims to refresh and reinvigorate small centres with public art and outdoor upgrades of Council-owned public spaces. It also leverages local knowledge and stakeholder participation to improve the liveability of the neighbourhood.
We also developed a place character statement for Day Street (see below) that helped inform the delivery and recommendations.
“The Day Street Shops are a daily ritual for local residents and a place to call home for the independent businesses that service the small centre. Its location on the corner of Carpenter and Day Streets means easy access and parking that encourages short but high visitation by locals wanting to pay the bills, collect the groceries or pick up a quick meal on the way home. It’s a diverse retail offer with many businesses complimenting each other making it a true centre of convenience.
The small centre is a friendly and welcoming space with many in the community knowing each other and aware of the area’s history. It’s a generational experience with customers of the past now working in the shops and business owners staying in the community as workers long after they’ve sold their businesses. A mural down Day Street epitomises these relationships through its initial creation and community involvement, but also its ongoing presence as a unique art feature for the area. Other streetscape features, including planter boxes and seating, require improvement but the bones are there for a physical upgrade that matches the existing, and proud, social fabric.”
