anonymouslyb

Beautiful combination of city-like cafes & culture, blended with the decent block sizes & parks of an outer-suburb. Ivanhoe is truly a lovely area of Melbourne to grow up in. Many dog owners live in this suburb & they are spoilt for choice when choosing an outing for their walks. Also a newly refurbished public library that has a huge range of borrowing options, otherwise serves as an ideal study location.
Unfortunately the cost of purchasing or renting a house in the area is unachievable for my family. The council rates alone are enough to put one into staggering debt!

Back in the late 90s/early 00s Mill Park was the "latest & greatest" big development suburb to make it's mark on the map. Every young couple or family wanted to live in the area, mainly just because it was new. The most especially sought after Lakes Estate with it's panoramic views across to the CBD was prime real estate. It is still being built upon to this day.
Over the last decade or so, the entire area has become very weathered looking, the public amenities are mainly non-functional, the shops are from a bygone era, buildings & facilities are no more developed than they were when originally built & enrolment numbers in local government schools has dropped so dramatically due to the superior new schools in Epping, Mernda, Wollert, Doreen etc. Mill Park Secondary College is a washed out embarrassment of an institution.
Which brings me to the last point & that's easily the escalating rates of youth crimes relating to drugs, alcohol & traffic offences. The way young people speak, dress, vape & drive in this suburb is deplorable. The statistics of lives lost is at an all time high.