Satellite cities in Australia? Suburban hubs orbiting the urban core

City of Joondalup. Photo credit: Travis Hayto Photography.

As major cities in Australia have grown to burst, cleverly planned satellite cities – also known as second CBDs – have risen to alleviate the strain such as Geelong in Melbourne and Sydney-adjacent Parramatta.

In the Perth metropolitan area, the City of Joondalup has been heralded as its only and successful example of this – but how does its performance compare to its eastern states counterparts and is Perth in need of a smaller sibling?

“Satellite cities are good for distributing population pressures, creating additional employment hubs, supporting regional infrastructure development and are usually more a ordable than inner-city areas,” Ray White Chief Economist Nerida Conisbee said.

“Risks associated with satellite city development include contributing to urban sprawl if planned poorly and the struggle to create enough local jobs to support its relative independence – something which was a problem in Geelong for many years.”

According to Ms Conisbee, satellite cities in the Australian landscape are defined by several criteria, including a distinct economy and job market, semi-independent functionality, major facilities – such as hospitals and shopping centres – as well as a distance of 20-100km and good transport connections to its associated major city.

The City of Joondalup satisfies all of these criteria aside from the independent functionality and distinct job market, with The Agency Perth Property Partner Jon Wood saying most of the people he sells houses to in the area still work in the city.

“There’s a little bit of employment,” he said. “People who buy properties through us are employed at places like Joondalup Health Campus or the factories out of Wangara, but predominantly people are still employed in the Perth CBD.”

“Joondalup is more of a planned suburban centre within the Perth metropolitan area while Geelong is a true satellite city with its own distinct identity and Parramatta is evolving into Sydney’s second CBD,” Ms Conisbee said.

“It is possible Joondalup will become more like Parramatta as Perth’s population continues to increase, particularly northwards.”

What makes the City of Joondalup similar to Parramatta is its proximity not just to the CBD but to the neighbouring cities of Wanneroo and Stirling which, according to the City of Joondalup Mayor Albert Jacob, means it services an additional 500,000 residents within a 20-minute travel radius.

Potential for growth is strong for the City of Joondalup, as it is home to the state’s first innovation precinct where Mr Jacob said entrepreneurs, startups and established businesses converged to collaborate and drive economic growth.

“The precinct aims to link education, business, industry and government to address complex challenges with innovative technologies,” he said.

“Joondalup has the opportunity to provide jobs, skills, training, further education and housing to grow the community and the local economy, as well as to support the Perth CBD as an alternative centre delivering real opportunities and benefits.”

However, it remains yet to be seen whether there will be a need in Perth to action the independence of the City of Joondalup as a satellite city comparable to Geelong or Parramatta.

The latest regional population data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics numbered the population of Sydney at 5.45 million and Melbourne at 5.21 million while Perth – despite displaying the highest growth rate of 3.6 per cent – was only 2.31 million.

Populations of their respective satellite cities were 269,145 in Parramatta and 282,809 in Geelong.

As it appeared in the 2025 January 4 edition of The West Australian.