The Changing Role Of The City Centre In Adelaide And Melbourne

It is not too often that sufficient similarities and comparable data enable us to make significant comparisons between the central areas of Australian capital cities. This article presents such material about Adelaide and Melbourne. In particular, it takes advantage of floorspace and employment surveys carried out in these central areas in 1987 and 1992 to identify not only trends but important points of similarity and difference. Some of the more important reasons for these changes are canvassed in the context of current literature. The different policy responses of the two state governments and central city authorities are also examined as there has been a change in both cities to a state Liberal government following Labor governments which have incurred heavy financial losses and increased state debt.