What's Happening in Balcatta, WA…

Osborne Park, Western Australia residents are set to benefit from a major redevelopment of the Westfield Innaloo Shopping Centre.

Owned and operated by the Scentre Group, an application to redevelop the centre was recently approved by the Joint Development Assessment Panel (JDAP).

The $450m first stage of the project is to include a cinema complex and a second storey, with the centre almost doubling in size from 51,300 to 99,000 square meters.

City of Stirling Mayor Cr Giovanni Italiano said the transformation would include a mix of community and commercial space, entertainment and retail.

He said shoppers will enjoy a wider variety of outlets with the addition of a further 110 planned in the redevelopment, along with a fresh food market and new department store.

The arrival of so many new retail outlets is expected to boost demand for other local services, such as brochure and flyer printing.

Mayor Italiano said that when complete, the new look complex will become a key focus of the area’s City Centre and contribute towards it developing into a world class lifestyle hub, and eventually into Perth’s second CBD.

He said also included in the transformation were upgrades to bike lanes, pedestrian pathways and existing external roads.

A Scentre Group spokesman said it was expected the project would create 1,900 construction jobs and, once completed, a further 1,250 permanent positions at the centre.

Work on the upgrade is expected to be completed by early 2018.