Site 11 Kendall & Harding Streets, Preston/Coburg - Melbourne Formation and Terrace

This information has been developed from one or more of these publications:

Sites of Environmental Significance in the Flood Plain of the Upper Yarra Valley Region (1983) by Neville Rosengren, Douglas Frood and Kim Lowe (as part of a study of Sites of Environmental Significance by the University of Melbourne for the then Upper Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges Authority).

Geological heritage sites, including sites of geomorphological interest and volcanic heritage sites, are under regular revision by the Geological Society of Australia, especially in the assessment of significance and values.Reference should be made to the most recent reports. See the Earth Science Heritage section of the Geological Society of Australia website for details of geological heritage reports, and a bibliography.

Location:	YARRA 5000/04.09 E22000 N20225 to N20260
	Cliff on left bank of Merri Creek below Kendall Street and broad terrace on right bank north of Harding Street. The site is immediately upstream of the pedestrian suspension bridge linking Kendall and Harding Streets.
Access:	Merri Path and Kendall and Harding Streets
Ownership & Municipality:	Public Land, City of Preston (left bank) and City of Coburg (right bank). Part of the right bank site is under private lease for a market garden.
Site Description:	The left bank site is a cliff of Silurian Melbourne Formation sedimentary rock. This cliff marks the edge of a broad ridge of Silurian rock that forms the divide between the Merri Creek and Darebin Creek in Northcote and Preston. This ridge was high enough to escape burial by the basalt of the Newer Volcanics lava flows that came down the adjacent creek valleys. Tongues of basalt penetrated up small gullies or tributary valleys on the side of this ridge and remain as erosion outliers isolated on the lower slopes of the ridge. On such isolated block obscured by roads and buildings occurs on Kendall Street. As the Merri Creek cut a new valley at the edge of an incised meander where the creek was confined between the lava flows and the ridge of sedimentary rock. On the inner edge of the meander, a gently sloping terrace covered by a veneer of alluvium has developed. The gentle terrain and alluvial soil forms the basis for the market garden north of Harding Street. These soils are examples of the very dark “cricket pitch” soils of the Merri Creek area.
Significance Rating:	Local
	The site is an example of the complex of processes that have produced cliffs and terraces along much of the Merri Creek. The Kendall Street outcrop is one of the more extensive natural exposures of Silurian rock in the Merri Creek valley in the Metropolitan area.
Site Sensitivity:	Class 3.
	The cliffs are not accessible and can be adequately viewed from the opposite bank from the Merri path. They are considerably obscured by vegetation but removal or pruning of this is probably not warranted given the low significance of the site. The retention of the Harding Street market garden is compatible with retaining the geomorphological significance of the Harding Street terrace.
References:	Melbourne and Suburbs, Australia 1959 (map) 1:31,680. Geol surv Vict Sunbury, Australia 1973 (map) 1:63,360 Geol surv Vict (Part of 7822 Zone 55)

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