Broadmeadows

Did You Know?

• At the 2016 census, 43.5% of Broadmeadows residents were born in Australia, with the next most common birthplaces being Lebanon, Turkey, and Pakistan.
• Broadmeadows railway station is patrolled by Victoria Police Protective Services Officers from 6pm until the last train service, seven days a week.
• The most common religious response in Broadmeadows at the 2016 census was Islam at 35.6%, followed by Catholic at 18.3%.

History

The Broadmeadows area was home to the Wurundjeri Aboriginal nation before European settlement, with pastoralists arriving in the 1840s. The original township, now known as Westmeadows, was surveyed in 1850, with Ardlie Street as its commercial centre featuring a hotel, police station, and shire office. The centre shifted when the railway line and station opened two kilometres east in 1872, and new civic offices were built near the station in 1928. During the First World War, Broadmeadows hosted the main camp for training Victorian AIF recruits, established in August 1914 at 'Mornington Park' on loaned property. Initially a tented camp with poor drainage, sickness among recruits led to the main training camp being moved to Seymour in May 1915, though Broadmeadows Camp remained in use with improved facilities. The Housing Commission of Victoria began building a 2,226-hectare estate in 1949, and between 1975 and 1979 constructed over 900 houses in the area it called Westmeadows Heights.

Sport

Hume City FC, a National Premier Leagues Victoria soccer side, calls John Ilhan Memorial Reserve in nearby Westmeadows home. In rugby league, Northern Thunder plays in NRL Victoria. At Seabrook Reserve in Broadmeadows, the Victoria's Rugby League Centre of Excellence was finished in 2023 for $16.9 million. It is Northern Thunder's home ground, houses NRL Victoria and Touch Football Victoria's offices, and hosts training, camps, and tournaments. The facility has a show pitch, three community competition pitches, a female-friendly pavilion with high-performance training and recovery spaces, and parking.

Environmental issues

In October 2018, a fatty and smelly liquid was found near Yuroke Creek. EPA Victoria traced the leak to Fresh Cheese Co (Aust) Pty Ltd, a dairy manufacturer, where a crack in concrete allowed liquid to escape from a drain into the creek, damaging wildlife and vegetation. The company was fined $8,060 in court and accepted legal responsibility, noting a burglary a week before the leak as a possible cause.