Installing bikes lanes, widening footpaths and slowing traffic across Braddon is at the centre of a new plan to guide the future of Canberra's best known "hipster hangout".
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Retail trading hours could also be extended in a bid to grow the district's night-time economy, under the new City Renewal Authority's plan.
The authority's Braddon Place Plan, published on Wednesday, outlines a suite of proposals to improve the public amenity of the capital's most densely-populated suburb.
The uncosted vision proposes to install bike lanes on streets throughout the precinct, which is bounded by Girrahween Street, Torrens Street, Cooyong Street and Northbourne Avenue.
Footpaths - including on Lonsdale Street - could be also be widened, as the authority looks to turn the suburb into a "low vehicle-speed, pedestrian-environment". That could also involve lowering speed limits or installing extra pedestrian crossings.
Pop-up gardens and parklets - footpath extensions commonly used for outdoor dining - are also expected to spring up across Braddon.
The authority's chief executive, Malcolm Snow, said it was too early to know whether the proposed changes would result in a reduction in the number of on-street carparks in Braddon.
"The current layout of on-street parking in Braddon could be reconfigured to incorporate bike lanes and wider footpaths, and as a result improve the area’s public spaces," Mr Snow said. "Whether the amount of on-street parking changes will be determined through the design process"
A program of events, including a monthly fresh food and artisan market, could also be held throughout the year, alongside a street music and busker program.
The authority is also keen to inject new life into the precinct's night-time economy, flagging a proposal to extend retail trading hours and simplifying the process for business to trade and display goods on the street.
The plan highlights the need to improve services for a growing population, while retaining its gritty and creative roots.
Braddon was once dominated by car yards and garages, but cheap rents attracted creatives and entrepreneurs to the neighbourhood.
More than 90,000 people visit the suburb every day, according to the authority's figures. The suburb's median age is 29, while more than a third of its population earns above $78,000 a year.
The plan said some traders have raised concerns about the concentration of activity in and around
Lonsdale Street, and flags a need to integrate the surrounding streets to create a coherent precinct.
Mr Snow said improved public spaces would help complement the high-density developments reshaping the suburb.
"Braddon is an evolving neighbourhood that has developed a distinctive character of its own, separate but complementary to that of Civic” Mr Snow said.
“It has grown from a semi-industrial area into a popular entertainment and retail district despite the quality of its public spaces rather than because of them."
