Bayswater Roller City

Address: 37 Scoresby Road, Bayswater 3153

Years of Operation: 1977 - 2021

Building Status: STILL STANDING

Melway Reference: Edition 20 (1990), 64 G4

Associated name/s (manager/proprietor/owner):

June Kinzett (now Gladman) 1977 - 2011
Anette Ducommun 2011 - 2021

Telephone:

729 1053
9720 5980

Website: www.rollercity.com.au

Affiliated Clubs/Teams:

Roller City Bayswater Skating Club
Bayswater Lions (Inline Hockey)
Ballistyx Bulldogs (Inline Hockey

Melway Map (click to expand)

See the rink at map reference G4: "Roller City"

Copyright Melway Publishing Pty Ltd, edition 20, 1990. Excerpt of Melway from Map Collection: Melbourne Street Directories, Archives and Special Collections, University of Melbourne. See the full Melway edition here.

Google Maps

Google Street View (click "View on Google Maps" for more functionality)

If you look at previous dates of Street View on Google Maps it is still possible to see the rink branded as Roller City up until the November 2021 images.

Archived Website

Wayback Machine snapshot of www.rollercity.com.au from 31 January 2004 (other snapshots also available)

https://web.archive.org/web/20040131185329/http://www.rollercity.com.au/

Media

This video shows Bayswater Roller City in its last iteration as a rink before closing. uploaded around 2019-2020. Credit to the YouTube Channel "@Berserk1080"

Rink Visit - July 2025

Remnants of a Rink

In July 2025 I visited the former Bayswater Roller City rink and was able to capture some pictures of what remains. The building is currently tenanted by Hunted Antiques and Collectibles. So, what does remain? In some ways not much at all; but in other ways, everywhere you look are clues of a once thriving skating rink. For those who skated at Bayswater, the below photos will hopefully bring back some warm memories.

For me, visiting my childhood rink is now bittersweet. To still be able to walk on the rink surface that I learnt to skate on all those years ago brings back many memories of happy times with friends, family and coaches. The objects captured in the images below are touchstones, transporting me back to years gone by. Being there now also brings with it a pang of sadness, seeing the building not being used for the purpose for which it was built back in 1977.

I'd like to thank Hunted Antiques and Collectibles for generously allowing me to take photos inside their business. Please go down and check it out for yourself. There is more that I didn't photograph, out of respect for Hunted Antiques and Collectibles operating an ongoing, unrelated business.

The Roller City sign still remains, only covered up by a canvas banner for Hunted Antiques and Collectibles. You can still see the Roller City web address and phone number at the bottom.

Who remembers pulling up in this carpark and wheeling your skate bag into the rink? The facade remains largely unchanged. However larger set of entry doors have now been blocked off.

The rink floor is still on display and hasn't be covered over or removed. The figure circles, speed lines and hockey lines are all still visible. If you look a little closer you will find sections where the older cream/yellow rink surface is showing through.

Lights, lights and more lights! I probably tried to count all of the bulbs as a kid. The fixtures are all still there. Sadly, the coloured bulbs are long gone.

What songs do you remember skating to? How many times have you heard the enthusiastic "Welcome to Roller City Bayswater" come out of these very speakers? The Fane speaker cabinets are still in place. It's looks like one cabinet has even been jury-rigged to play soft music as you wander up and down the aisles looking at the wares for sale.

Oh the carpet! Soo much carpet! You have to look closely to find these remnants that once proudly blanketed the floors and walls of the rink. Did you have a coach who used to draw on the shagpile wall carpet to try to explain something to you?

Look up! The dropped ceiling section shows where the skate hire/boot room once was, when it was situated in the middle of the rink, between the video games and the snack bar area.

Who walked up these steps to the party room? Was a Roller City party what got you started in skating?

Memorabilia & Interesting Items

I recently purchased a second-hand pair of roller skates from the op-shop. I removed the plates and couldn't believe what was stamped on the boots sole:

"HAND MADE BY

ALTAMURA

SPORTING FOOTWARE P/L

ALL LEATHER

DISTRIBUTED BY

ROLLER CITY PROMOTIONS P/L

BAYSWATER"

More research is required on this and I will post a picture of the full boot when i have a moment.

For now though, it appears Roller City sold it's own line of roller skates. Some of which are still around! It's also worth pointing out that the boots were made by Altamura, a legendary local bootmaker, based in Thomastown. Though the business has long closed the boots are still held in the highest regard and are the final word in local craftsmanship

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