Location
Geelong West is primarily a residential suburb adjoining the city of Geelong.

Description
Geelong West is a cosmopolitan suburb, containing Geelong's oldest and most dynamic shopping strip, Pakington Street. Since the 1980s, Geelong West has undergone great changes. Timber houses and cottages have been renovated and many shops along Pakington Street have become cafes with style. The period homes of Geelong West have become popular with young professionals and first-home buyers. The historic Geelong West town hall - a meeting place and home to the Migrant Resource Centre - is in Pakington Street. The street also hosts Geelong's annual multicultural festival - the Pako Festa- which attracts more than 100,000 people. A heritage walk to Western Beach presents the full range of historic housing, laneways and buildings of the suburb. Geelong West is ideally situated, close to Western Beach and the city centre.

History
Ten hectare blocks of land were sold by the Government around Pakington Street in 1839 but the region did not take off until the vacant land between Geelong and Geelong West was sold as suburban lots from 1843 to 1845. Shops opened along Pakington Street in the 1850s. Scottish and Irish immigrants took up residence and gradually light industry moved onto or near Pakington Street. Donaghy's Rope Works (1873) and the Newberry foundry (1886) provided local employment. Houses in Geelong West reflect the history of the suburb and are mainly single-storey timber structures, representing a number of styles: Victorian, double-fronted Edwardian or Federation houses and Californian bungalows. After the second world war, timber houses fell in popularity as families built newer, brick homes in other suburbs.