Croydon, Victoria

Croydon is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 28 km east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Maroondah local government area. Croydon recorded a population of 28,608 at the 2021 census.

History

Dating back to 1840 the land was first utilised by settlers for grazing and the first road cut through the area now known as Croydon, was initially known as Sawmill Road, as a sawmill was nearby. Later it became known as Oxford Road and later Mt Dandenong Road, some time in the early 1900s.

Owing to the coarse silvery-white grass, the area now known as Croydon was first called "White Flats". The Lacey family from Essex, England named the area Croydon after Mrs Lacey's home town. They preferred this to Mr Lacey's home town, Steeple Bumpstead. The Lacey family has a street named after them near the Main St. shopping precinct.

In 1868 parcels of land were surveyed and the first habitations were constructed with wattle and daub. These were later rebuilt in timber and the area prospered in sheep, beef and dairy farming, and sawmills. Orchards were soon established and thrived. Crops included apples, cherries, pears, peaches and plums. Street names in and around Croydon now reflect the impact orchards had on "White Flats".

In 1874 Cobb & Co. ran horses and carts to the area, also known as Brushy Creek.

In 1882 a single rail track was constructed through to Lilydale. When opened on 1 December 1882 the station was called Warrandyte. Travellers would travel by rail to "Warrandyte" station and were then faced with a horse and coach ride to Warrandyte, some 10 km north, which was not well received by the vast majority of travellers, believing the Yarra River was close by. On 1 August 1884 it was renamed Croydon railway station.

From the mid-1880s Croydon started to develop and Mr James Hewish built his home and several other business ventures, including a general store, news agency, butchers shop and hotel, and planted various orchard trees. The Post Office opened on 1 December 1883 after the railway line was established. Nelson's Hill Post Office opened nearby in 1902 and was renamed Burnt Bridge in 1979.

In 1908 Croydon Hall, in Mt Dandenong Road, was built. It is now home to EV's Entertainment Centre.

In 1912 Croydon was proclaimed and gazetted as a town.

In 1925 the Croydon section of the Lilydale railway line was electrified, with electrification arriving at Lilydale a month later. Croydon railway station was rebuilt in the 1980s. As part of its increasing passenger traffic the bus station/interchange was revamped in the early 2000s and is used by Invicta and Ventura Bus Services.

In the early 1920s a Monday market began. The market included live animals, chickens, birds and other small animals. It was a noted landmark and meeting place for locals from neighbouring suburbs until the site was redeveloped in the 1980s. It closed down in 2012.

Originally Croydon was part of the Shire of Lillydale. In 1957 a request was submitted for Croydon to leave the Shire of Lillydale and become its own entity. The City of Croydon, Shire of Croydon was incorporated in May 1961 and was proclaimed a City in 1971. It was merged, along with the City of Ringwood, into the City of Maroondah in 1994.

Croydon today

The Main Street of Croydon is a thriving hub and currently has over 187 traders, including eateries, clothing, music, toys, hairdressers, a cinema and many others. Main Street has ample parking, both on-street and behind the shops.

Croydon Central is a strong-performing food and services-based neighbourhood centre located 28km east of the Melbourne CBD in Croydon. The centre is situated in a high-profile location in Croydon, on the corner of Kent and Wicklow Avenue, and is well-served by the Croydon train station and bus terminal. There is easy car access to Melbourne CBD via the M3.
Croydon is also served by the Arndale Shopping Centre on Mt Dandenong Road, opposite Croydon Park, which has in excess of 20 retail outlets. It has an area of 44,980 sqm and 738 parking spots.

During the late 1990s and early 2000s onwards, Croydon's housing density and type changed and increased with the advent of 'dual occupancy'. Many former large single-dwelling blocks were sold and redeveloped. Some residents are unhappy with this trend, and have more than once stated at Council meetings and in the local newspapers over the years that they are "second cousins to those in Ringwood".

The Croydon area is served by a weekly newspaper, the ''Maroondah Leader''.

Croydon has many churches in the area, including Catholic, Baptist, Uniting, Presbyterian, Seventh-Day Adventist and Pentecostal conducted an Electoral Representation Review. This resulted in the existing seven wards being amalgamated into three. Retaining three names, each new ward has three Councillors. The new wards are as follows:

*Arrabri (South – East of the City of Maroondah)
*Wyreena (North – North East of the City of Maroondah)
*Mullum (Central – Western of the City of Maroondah)

Croydon is represented by two State Electoral Districts; Croydon and Warrandyte. From the Federal perspective, Croydon sits across two Electoral Divisions; Casey and Deakin.

Leisure and lifestyle

In 2007 the City of Maroondah built additional leisure facilities in Croydon, in addition to the existing Croydon gymnasium facility in Civic Square. Called Aquahub, it opened in August, 2008.

Croydon Memorial is located on Springfield Avenue. An outdoor pool venue, open each November – March, it also holds VICSWIM classes during school holidays. There has been considerable debate as to the 'viability' of the pool from Council. Petitions were signed and meetings held to try to keep the pool open. In 2007 Council agreed to keep the pool open.

Wyreena Community Arts Centre is located on Hull Road, just east of Dorset Road. It is home to varied artistic and lifestyle activities. It is the location of 3ECB, Radio Eastern FM 98.1 community radio station.

The Croydon library is located on Civic Drive. As a member of the Eastern Regional Libraries, it hosts a range of events for all ages, including author talks and children's events.

Maroondah Festival

The Maroondah Festival is held each year in the Croydon Park and embraced by the City of Maroondah and residents from surrounding suburbs. Performers have included:
Daryl Braithwaite, Kate Ceberano, Vanessa Amorosi, Paul Kelly, Johnny Diesel, Hunters and Collectors, The Living End, 28 Days, Bodyjar, Frenzal Rhomb, Spiderbait, Kisschasy and even a few international acts, including Sonia Dada.

Youth services

EV's Youth Centre opened in 1989 and is run by Maroondah Youth Services, for young people aged between 12 and 25 yrs. The team cover a wide range of activities and information services for young people to access, including INFO-HQ each Wednesday afternoon and Drop-In on Friday afternoons (Drop-In is open except during school holidays).

There is also the Maroondah FReeZA Group, a long-standing local venue for all-ages live music events, with both all age and under-age, fully supervised D&D free dance parties and live gigs.

In the 1990s EV's Youth Centre hosted shows by acts like Fear Factory, Regurgitator, Something for Kate and Fugazi.

Sport

Croydon City Arrows Soccer Club was established in 1957 and plays its home games at Dorset Recreational Reserve. The club has been Victorian champions twice, in both 1985 and 1986, and plays in Provisional League 1 South-East. Notable players include former Australian internationals Danny Allsopp, Paul Wade and Peter Ollerton

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