Narre Warren has a population density of over 2000 people per square kilometre. Narre Warren has its own railway station, located on Webb Street, and has its own shopping centre, Westfield Fountain Gate, Australia's second largest shopping centre by area after Malvern East's Chadstone Shopping Centre. The biggest secondary school in Narre Warren is Fountain Gate Secondary College.
History
The original Main Street is some distance from present-day central Narre Warren, beside the railway line, causing development to occur away from the original settlement, and the building in which the general store also served as the post office, still exists as a local landmark, established 1857.[citation needed] Narre Warren Post Office, located on what is now Heatherton Road, opened on 21 January 1869. In 1900, it was renamed Narre Warren North, and Narre Warren Railway Station Post Office (open since 1886) was renamed Narre Warren. The locale of Webb Street is named after Sydney James Webb, founder of a newsagency there.[2]
Demographics
The most common ancestries in Narre Warren were Australian 21.9%, English 20.6%, Irish 5.1%, Scottish 5.1% and Indian 3.6%.
62.7% of people were born in Australia. The most common foreign countries of birth were India 3.6%, England 3.2%, Sri Lanka 2.7%, Afghanistan 1.9% and New Zealand 1.9%.
The most common responses for religion were Catholic 28.8%, No Religion 19.6%, Anglican 10.9%, Islam 5.6% and Buddhism 3.9%.
66.7% of people spoke only English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Dari 10%, Sinhalese 1.9%, Arabic 1.5%, Spanish 1.4% and Hindi 1.3%.[3]
Residential development
A Narre Warren street before the construction of houses – 2001
The same Narre Warren street after the construction of houses – 2006
Over the years, Narre Warren has grown from a semi-rural residential town to become a part of a major growth corridor in the southeast of Melbourne.
In recent years,[when?] a multitude of new housing developments have seen Narre Warren expand to such an extent that it now adjoins neighbouring suburbs such as Berwick.
Kim Cang Temple, a Vietnamese Buddhist temple, is located in the suburb.[4]
Sport
The Narre Warren Football Club plays in the Outer East Football Netball League. It was formed in 1953 as Narre Hallam Football Club to serve Narre Warren and Hallam, and was a founding member of the South West Gippsland Football League in 1954.[5] The club won premierships in 1957 and 1973. It was also runners-up in 1956, 1970, 1971, 1972 and 1981. In 1989, the club renamed itself the Narre Warren Football Club.
In 2004, Casey Panthers Soccer Team was founded with the home ground being Prospect Hill Reserve. The senior team compete in State League 5 competition. In 2022, the u17a team nicknamed the invincibles won the South East A grade and State A grade competitions and also the prestigious Polonia and Altona cups without losing a game.[citation needed] This was the only occurrence of this quadruple in Victorian soccer history.[citation needed]
Retail and civic development
Westfield Fountain Gate (named after one of the earlier subdivisions) is at the heart of the main commercial precinct in Narre Warren. It is one of the largest shopping centres in Australia, housing many of Australia's major retailers. The centre has been made famous by the popular Australian television show Kath & Kim, parts of which were also filmed at Westfield Southland.[6]
There is also a local shopping strip around the railway station in Webb Street. The shopping strip includes stores such as bakeries, beauticians and a small supermarket.
The civic precinct is located outside the boundary of Westfield and includes the City of Casey municipal offices, Narre Warren Library and the Casey ARC (Aquatic and Recreation Centre). This precinct has recently finished a $300 million redevelopment by the Casey Council, an entertainment precinct by the name of Bunjil Place.[7]
Narre Warren is connected by many major roads, mainly: Monash Freeway (M1), Princes Highway (Alt 1), Narre Warren - Cranbourne Road, which later becomes Narre Warren North Road, and outside of Narre Warren becomes Hallam - Belgrave Road (C404), and Shrives Road (SR 12).[8]
Busses
The biggest bus interchange in Narre Warren is at Fountain Gate SC/Overland Dr. Three bus operators go through Narre Warren, with the primary operator being Ventura. With the other two being Cranbourne Transit, and South Coast Bus. The following lines stop in Narre Warren: 695F, 697, 828, 834, 835, 838, 841, 842, 891, 895, 925, 981, and the once weekly service Cowes - Fountain Gate via Anderson.[9]
