St Kilda East is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 6 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Glen Eira and Port Phillip local government areas. St Kilda East recorded a population of 12,571 at the 2021 census. St Kilda East is one of the more diverse and densely populated suburbs of Melbourne. It has a prominent Hasidic Jewish community, descended from Polish and Russian immigrants. Quiet and residential, it is quite different from the adjacent suburb of St Kilda. However, the area around Carlisle Street is very diverse with a strong arts, alternative and indie community.

History

The St Kilda East area was part of the lands of the Boon wurrung tribe of Indigenous Australians before being first settled by Anglo-British settlers in the 1850s. Smaller timber shacks were common during the early 1860s to 1870s, with larger houses on the bigger subdivisions. During the late 1870s, terraced housing began around the railway line. Alma Park was laid out and areas surrounding the park were set aside for religious purposes, resulting in a large number of convents and chapels along Chapel Street and either side of Dandenong Road. In the 1950s, speculative development resulted in the alteration of many of the suburb's streetscapes. Centred on Chapel Street and to the east of the railway line, flats became common in the area. Recent development of the suburbs, rising land values and excellent access to public transport has seen recent gentrification in the area. Modern infill medium density apartments are being built on many blocks, with the Carlisle Street area designated an activity centre under the Melbourne 2030 planning scheme.

Demographics

64.6% were born in Australia. Other Countries of birth top responses were England 3.9%, India 2.3%, New Zealand 2.2%, United States of America 2.2% & Israel 1.7%. Religious affiliation top responses were No Religion (so described) 41.5%, Judaism 26.4, Catholic 11.2%, Not Stated 7% & Anglican 2.8%.

Education institutions

The main schools in St Kilda East are the Edmund Rice Campus of St Mary’s College, the Caulfield Campus of Caulfield Grammar School, Malvern Community School, Ripponlea Primary School, the St Kilda East campus of Mount Scopus Memorial College, Yeshivah College, Cheder Levi Yitchak, Bnos Chana, Beth Rivkah Ladies College and part of St Michael's Grammar School. The Rabbinical College of Australia and New Zealand (Yeshivah Gedolah Zal), a tertiary institution for the training of Orthodox rabbis and religious functionaries in the Chabad-Lubavitch denomination, is located on Alexandra Street. Ripponlea Primary School (No. 4087) was opened on 3 July 1922 with 400 pupils in grades prep to eight. John Edward Woodruff (1867-1944) was the school's first headmaster, and he served as such until his retirement in 1932. In 2011 enrolment at the school was 272 students across prep to grade 6.

Culture

St Kilda East is home to the Red Stitch Actors Theatre, a professional theatre, located on the corner of Dandenong Road and Chapel Street.

Transport

St Kilda East is served by several forms of public transport. Major tram routes operate on Carlisle Street/Balaclava Road, Chapel Street, Dandenong Road and St Kilda Road. Buses operate along Orrong Road and Hotham Street. Balaclava and Ripponlea railway stations, on the Sandringham line, also service the suburb.

Landmarks

Residential architecture

The suburb is dominated by 1960s flats. There are, however, some pockets of preserved heritage streetscapes. Godfrey Avenue has well-preserved rows of Edwardian cottages on either side of the street and is protected by council heritage controls. Camden Street has several rows of Victorian semi-detached timber workers cottages. Some large Victorian buildings remain along Inkerman Street and Alma Road, but have been since subdivided into flats. The streets in between have a mix of housing from different periods.

Non-residential architecture

Places of worship

There are several churches in St Kilda East, and multiple synagogues, reflecting the area's extensive history of both Christian and Jewish migration. Many of these buildings have historic significance with heritage registration, and often form various religious precincts.

Judaism

Yeshiva Centre is the headquarters and main synagogue of Chabad in Melbourne. Chabad House of Caulfield is a replica of the New York headquarters of the Chabad movement at 770 Eastern Parkway.

Anglican

The bluestone All Saints Anglican Church on Chapel Street was built in 1861, and is reputed to have the largest seating capacity of any Anglican parish church in the Southern hemisphere, with a capacity of 1500 in the pews. The neighbouring Parish Hall was built as an extension to the church in 1909 and was restored in 2005 during a conversion into a boutique gymnasium.

Roman Catholic

The St Mary's Catholic Church (208-214 Dandenong Road), designed by William Wardell and built in 1858, was one of the earliest bluestone churches. The East St Kilda Uniting Church, on the corner of Hotham and Inkerman Streets, was built in 1887, to the design of architect Hillson Beasley. Originally a church of the Congregational Union of Australia prior to the formation of the Uniting Church, it was sold by the Uniting Church to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Melbourne in 2011 for the establishment of an Eastern Orthodox use church, according to the provisions of an Ordinariate.

Uniting Church

The St George's Uniting Church, on Chapel Street, was built in 1877, to the design of Albert Purchas and is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register. It has been leased by St Michael's Grammar School since 1990.

Orthodox

The former Balaclava Corps Hall, built in 1929 on Camden Street, is an unusual design, featuring castellated motifs. It was sold to the Autocephalous Orthodox Ukrainian Church in 1976, now being the parish of The Sacred Assumption of the Holy Virgin.

Public spaces

The suburb's main park is Alma Park, a large park designed by Clement Hodgkinson in 1867, which was split into two linear parks by the Sandringham railway line in 1858. The park has recreational facilities, including a heritage rotunda, a cricket and football (soccer) oval and bike paths, as well as large stands of elm trees, Moreton Bay Figs and native vegetation areas.

St Kilda General Cemetery

St Kilda Cemetery covers a large block bordered by Dandenong Road, Hotham Street, Alma Road and Alexandra Street. It is bounded by a historic wall and contains many Victorian era graves. The cemetery is the resting place of Alfred Deakin, the second Prime Minister of Australia, and Albert Jacka VC, MC, barrister and Mayor of St Kilda (1930).

East St Kilda Heritage Study

In 2004 the City of Port Phillip commissioned a heritage study that recommended the following areas as heritage precincts and places. The Council adopted most of the recommendations in 2004 and the controls which apply to each of the areas so listed. Heritage Precincts Individual Heritage Places For some reason, the following properties, although included in the heritage study recommendations, were not included in the overlay.

Heritage sites

St Kilda East contains a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

Notable residents