@newlifedownunder,
I have been watching this question, would love to help, but am in Sydney, and have spent about a total of 3 weeks in Melbourne in my whole life. Anyways, be assured, Melbourne is REALLY NICE, and some people even say it is nearly as nice as Sydney. From what I recall, Richmond itself seems a pretty OK area. But Melb on the whole has a reputation for having more general cultural activites and so on than Sydney. So I reckon you'll love it. And good luck.