Moonee Ponds, Victoria

Moonee Ponds Melbourne, Victoria
The Clocktower Centre, Moonee Ponds
Moonee Ponds
Population:	12,636 (2006)[1]
Postcode:	3039
Area:	4.4 km² (1.7 sq mi)
Location:	7 km (4 mi) from Melbourne
LGA:	City of Moonee Valley
State District:	Essendon
Federal Division:	Maribyrnong
Suburbs around Moonee Ponds: Aberfeldie Essendon Brunswick West Aberfeldie Moonee Ponds Brunswick West Maribyrnong Ascot Vale Parkville

Moonee Ponds is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 7 km north-west from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Moonee Valley.

It is home to Queens Park and the Moonee Valley Racecourse. At the 2006 Census, Moonee Ponds had a population of 12,636.

Attractions

The Australian Tax Office and Mondo Apartments, tallest buildings in Moonee Ponds

• The Clocktower Centre was the Essendon Town Hall, but today is a large theatre. As well as serving for some international, interstate and local functions, the Centre has a number of conference rooms. It is named after its large clocktower.

• The Moonee Ponds Junction is the centre of the suburb, with buses, trams and trains all converging in the area. The Clocktower Centre is nearby.

• Puckle Street is the main shopping street and there are many shops and cafes along its length. At its eastern end is Moonee Ponds Junction and at its western end is the Moonee Ponds train station.

• The Moonee Valley Racecourse is one of Melbourne's largest horse-racing tracks.

• Moonee Ponds Shopping Center is the host to a plethora of stores including Kmart, The Coffee Club, First Choice Liquor, Man to Man, Dick Smith Electronics, EB Games and Smiggle.

Sport

Aerial view of the Moonee Valley Racecourse

The suburb has an Australian Rules football team, Maribyrnong Park playing in the Essendon District Football League ^[2]and another Moonee Valley Football Club based at Ormond Park competing in the same league.^[3]

Transport

Moonee Ponds Station is located at the western end of Puckle Street, on the Craigieburn railway line. Bus 467 runs from the station to Aberfeldie. At the eastern end of Puckle Street is Moonee Ponds Junction. Tram number 82 terminates at the junction and Tram number 59 stops there. There is a bus interchange at the junction (called Moonee Ponds Interchange) where many bus routes terminate (routes  404 , 472 , 475 , 476 , 477 , 478 , 479 , 483 , 501 , 504 , 506 and 508 ).

The Maribyrnong River Trail and Moonee Ponds Creek Trail are cycling tracks in and around Moonee Ponds.

Notable residents

Moonee Ponds is where Barry Humphries' fictional housewife-megastar Dame Edna Everage originally lived. It is also the home of politician Bill Shorten. Australian singer Tina Arena also spent a large part of her early life growing up in Moonee Ponds.

• Jake Webster, former Melbourne Storm player who now plays for Hull KR in the European Super League.
• Jason Moran, Melbourne underworld figure.

See also

• City of Essendon - the former local government area of which Moonee Ponds was a part.
• Dame Edna Everage - fictional character who made Moonee Ponds famous worldwide.

References

1. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Moonee Ponds (State Suburb)". 2006 Census QuickStats. http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/ABSNavigation/prenav/LocationSearch?collection=Census&period=2006&areacode=SSC21465&producttype=QuickStats&breadcrumb=PL&action=401. Retrieved 2007-09-29. 
2. ^ Full Points Footy, Maribyrnong Park, http://www.fullpointsfooty.net/maribrynong_park.htm, retrieved 2009-04-15 
3. ^ Full Points Footy, Moonee Valley, http://www.fullpointsfooty.net/moonee_valley.htm, retrieved 2009-04-15 

Coordinates: 37°45′54″S 144°55′12″E / 37.765°S 144.92°E / -37.765; 144.92