The demolition of the Berlin Wall had huge global significance. But when it comes to deconstruction, smashing through Keira St - opening it up to cars for the first time in 25 years - is arguably going to have more impact for most of us.
There is a lot to love about Wollongong but, let's face it, the CBD is shambolic, seedy and seriously in need of TLC.
The council-lite we were handed by the State Government - the administrators you have when you don't have elected representatives - considered three options for the future of the mall. At most, they chose a mall spruce-up, baulking at even a partial opening to traffic.
What they did agree to, smartly, was to free up Keira St, at the western end of the mall, which has effectively sliced the inner city north and south. The move to allow all traffic along the length of Keira St will bring more activity to a CBD looking for a sustainable existence.
Hopefully, breaking the Keira St impasse will prove to be the first move towards the eventual reopening of at least part of the mall.
Wollongong is at the crossroads. It can forge its own future through bold decision-making and encouraging private investment (the GPT development will be critical) - or it can sit and watch the world go by as it becomes one of the great cities that never was.
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