Chamber president John Anderson said they had received more than 100 letters from Shepparton businesses and residents in support of the changes in under a week.
A community hub under the Telstra tower, no removal of trees, a retained footpath, calmer traffic and a relocated library are some of the changes the Chamber hopes to achieve.
Greater Shepparton City Council's $16.4 million refined Option 4 design for the mall was released for public comment in late March and closed last week.
It includes shaded public spaces with raised and sunken plant beds, trees and seating, shaded parking areas, a play space in Fraser St, a central plaza area and a shared zone for traffic and pedestrians in Stewart St.
“It’s a very elaborate plan — we want to simplify it,” Mr Anderson said.
“Considering Council has adopted a climate policy it seems harsh to take trees out and replace them with shades.
Mr Anderson said Council's proposal to direct traffic out via Stewart St would be unsafe.
“Our plan doesn’t include a street going out to Stewart, lots of people agree it would be better,” he said.
A Council spokesperson said safety had been a key consideration in the design process which involved consultation with engineers, their access and inclusion officer, Victoria Police and emergency services.
“As standard practice, the final design will be subject to a detailed traffic safety assessment before the detailed design is completed,” the spokesperson said.
Council said the design took in the need to be climate-friendly but conceded current trees would likely suffer from any level of construction impacting their extensive root zone.
“Considerable damage is occurring to the existing pavement and drainage infrastructure from the existing trees.”
Council said the plant beds would promote faster growth of trees and would result in a healthier tree with less damage to other vital infrastructure.
Under the Chamber's proposed changes, Stewart St could become an art walk showcasing a sample of local artwork in association with the Shepparton Art Museum.
Mr Anderson said there could also be a new town square precinct in Fraser St for families, children and the elderly.
“I would like to see the redevelopment set us up for decades to come as a world class shopping strip with changes to the current plan,” he said.
“We want to act on this as soon as possible because there’s a chance that the government will want projects that are shovel-ready.”
Council officers are currently looking at the community's feedback and will brief councillors in the coming weeks.
Inquiries can be directed to the Shepparton Chamber of Commerce and Industry on 0407 503 886.
