Walking down Flinders Street in the tropical city of Townsville, it is hard to believe you are in the heart of a thriving regional capital in the midst of a population boom.
There are vacant storefronts, cafes with no customers — and foot traffic is scarce.
Academics say this city isn't an outlier, but the norm as the way Australians are using CBDs is changing.
CBD not attracting big-name retail
Real estate agency Knight Frank's Craig Stack said Townsville's commercial vacancy rate was relatively high, sitting at about 20 per cent.
He said historically, in regional Queensland, big-name retailers were located further out of the CBD.
"I'd go one step further and say we're now seeing that [trend] in the metro capital cities CBDs where those high streets aren't attracting the same type of retailers," he said.
But Mr Stack said if Townsville wanted to revitalise its town centre, more people had to live in the CBD.
"For people living in new developments outside of the city centre, their need to go to the [CBD] other than [for] work … is going to be minimal," he said.
"It's common throughout regional Australia to see that drift away from city centres occurring, and the [cities] that are reversing that drift are the ones that are focussed on peopling living in [the CBD]."
Is the CBD dead?
Associate professor for urban planning at the University of Melbourne, Crystal Legacy, said the question of whether the CBD was dying was on a lot of planners' minds.
Dr Legacy said future planning policy needed to reflect people's changing living and travel patterns, with more people shopping at their local main street rather than heading into the city centre.
And while some cities, like Townsville in north Queensland, have previously offered free parking to draw people into town, Dr Legacy said it wasn't a long-term solution.
"Most people are travelling into the city by themselves," she said.
"We should make sure we've got good quality public transport, bike lanes and pedestrian footpaths, so people feel comfortable walking in cities."
Different role for CBD in the future
And as to the future of city centres in Australia, Dr Legacy said it was very much a live question.
Dr Legacy said billions of dollars were currently being invested in infrastructure in Melbourne. But, in future, city buildings might be used for social opportunities like co-working spaces or cultural centres.
"I don't think we're going to see a situation where we're decommissioning these assets," she said.
"CBDs could play an increased role in terms of cultural and social capital and bringing people together for festivals and exhibitions, rather than just commerce and work, more generally. "
Balancing act between suburbs and city
In Townsville, the CBD contributes more than $1 billion annually to the region's economy, but after two years of navigating COVID-19, the council is trying to get people back into town.
Townsville councillor Ann-Maree Greaney said it was a balancing act between encouraging locals to support their neighbourhood coffee shops as well as businesses operating in the town centre.
With shops sitting empty, Cr Greaney said the council was offering incentives to businesses to keep their shop fronts in good nick.
The council is currently offering grant funding for 50 per cent of eligible costs to modernise buildings of up to $30,000 per project.
Cr Greaney said a council-run market on Sundays had been successful in drawing weekend crowds.
