Liberal MLA for Murrumbidgee, Ed Cocks is calling for the establishment of a Town Centre for the Molonglo Valley following revelations the region will become home to far more people than previously planned.

The ACT Government’s recent population projections reveal the Molonglo Valley is expected to grow to 86,000 people by 2060, rather than the previously forecast 55,000.

“In five years, Molonglo Valley will be larger than Weston Creek. In 10 years, the population of Molonglo will be greater than the Woden Valley area and by 2040, Molonglo will be bigger than Woden and Weston Creek combined,” Mr Cocks said.

“Currently, the Molonglo Valley, like Weston Creek, relies on the Woden Town Centre. The increase in the size of the Molonglo Valley population will exacerbate the existing problems with Cooleman Court, and road access to and from Molonglo suburbs.”

Mr Cocks explained that a group centre is effectively a larger local shopping centre like Mawson or Kippax, whereas a town centre is a larger scale regional hub such as Gungahlin or Woden. A group centre has significant restrictions on shops and facilities compared with a proper town centre.

“A Molonglo Town Centre would attract greater investment, attract the larger scale stores that we all want to see and can give us the entertainment and recreational options people in Molonglo deserve,” Mr Cocks said.

“Woden is too far away for many Molonglo residents and Cooleman court is already overloaded. I want to see a Molonglo Town Centre that means you don’t have to get into your car and drive somewhere else to get the things that you need.

“The Labor-Greens Government has a track record of failing to provide the facilities and services the community requires. The bridge project is considerably behind schedule, we still don’t have a police station in the Molonglo Valley, and the Government hasn’t finalised a location for the fire station. It has been a decade worth of missed opportunities and broken promises.

“With a projected population of over 85,000, it’s not good enough to expect people from Molonglo to travel all the way to the Woden Town Centre for the important facilities and services they need," Mr Cocks concluded.