80 Collins Street

May 2011 Minister for Planning Mathew Guy has issued a permit for this development. The permitted scheme includes an L-shaped 33 level office tower with a front wing to be supported on legs, cantilevered above new ground level retail development and the historic buildings below. The front of this wing will be setback only 5.5m from the Collins Street boundary, and cantilever over the historic Le Louvre shop. Read report in The Age.

Whilst we commend the developers, QIC, for keeping us informed and modifying the design somewhat to address our concerns, it ignores hard-fought setback standards for the Collins Street East precinct. The heritage buildings were saved from demolition in the 1970s, and new towers since then have been set well back, at least 10m, in order to preserve the low-scale heritage setting. We are considering an appeal at VCAT.

February 2011 A fourth variation of this design has just been presented. The front of the tower is now set back 6m from Collins Street, and Le Louvre is treated more sympathetically. The new tower would still rob this part of Collins Street of the little sunlight that still gets through

February 2009 An office tower is proposed by the Queensland Investment Corporation in front of Nauru House, now known as 80 Collins Street. While the new ground level glass boxes would go some way to repair the damage left when heritage buildings were demolished in the 1970s, the tower would completely dominate the famous 'Paris End' of Collins Street. Partly supported on legs, perched above the old and new buildings, it would be built to the very edge of the street for the full height of 40+ storeys. It would especially dominate heritage buildings at its base such as the Le Louvre store (click here for the classification) and the 1867 townhouse on the corner.

The proposal ignores the long established principle that any large tower in Collins Street, especially at the ‘Paris End’, can only achieve true visual separation from the heritage dominated streetscape by being setback the preferred 10m from the street boundary. The principle of constructing a large new building suspended or cantilevered above a heritage building or streetscape is one that is vigorously opposed. This especially applies where the new construction hovers above the entire building or streetscape.

December 2010 The new Coalition Government has abandoned The Central City Advisory Committee appointed in mid-2010 by former Planning Minister Justin Madden in the wake of the Windsor Hotel controversy to provide the City of Melbourne with greater input into major decisions in the CBD. Read The Age article.

Abbotsford Convent

December 2011. Planning Minister, Matthew Guy, has granted the School approval to build classrooms and a playground within the Abbotsford Convent precinct.

http://www.nattrust.com.au/advocacy/heritage_council_heritage_victoria/abbotsford_convent

Spencer Street Power Station

January 2011 Construction has commenced with the partial demolition of the buildings.

September 2010 The Minister has issued a permit for this development

This follows the first meeting of the new Central City Standing Advisory Commitee on 9th July, which considered the Minister's central city planning officer's report recommending approval of the scheme with a few minor alterations.

Questions were raised about the density of the 4000 apartment, four tower scheme, and the treatment of the heritage buildngs has been slightly improved.

June 2010 Following the 'accidental' demolition of the only original 1896 building on the site of the former Melbourne Power Station, Victoria's first municipal electric power station, only the 1908 office block facing Spencer Street and the "Economiser' buildings remain on the corner of Spencer and Little Bourke Streets.

Despite protection by Heritage Overlay controls, the latest proposal assumed their demolition. Following a request for partial retention, they simply modified the design by altering the podium, leaving the tower suspended on legs passing through the roofs of the partly dismantled and then re-built buildings, subsuming them into the podium.

Completely building over heritage-listed buildings is something that the Trust has resisted over many years, and if this were to be approved, it would set a very bad precedent indeed.

The former Northcote Theatre

Following the appeal from National Trust and CATHS and the hearing on 31 March 2011, the Heritage Council has overturned the recommendation of Heritage Victoria and the former Northcote Theatre will now be added to the Register. The decision can be read here. The Trust classified it in 1999 at the State level and has requested a hearing before the Heritage Council.

Explosives Complex Deer Park

The Trust classified the Deer Park Explosives Complex in 2010. However Heritage Victoria determined not to add it to the Victorian Heritage Register Together with the City of Brimbank, the Sunshine & District Historical Society, and the Friends of the Black Powder Mill, we appealed that decision to the Heritage Council on 11 February. Unfortunately the Heritage Council upheld the Heritage Victoria recommendation and the future of the site is now back in the hands of the City of Brimbank.

Macquarie Bank Tower

This 17 storey office block in Flinders lane behind 171 Collins Street was approved by the former Minister for Planning in 2007. At 77m it is much taller than the historic buildings surrounding it, and nearly double the 'discretionary' height limit of 40m, which is mandatory on every other block along Swanston Street. As a Ministerial permit, no appeal relating to the height was possible (as was the case with the Windsor tower).

This will be by far the largest exception in the 40m height limit area, highly visible in crucial views when approaching the city from the south (and providing unbeatable views from the top floors), as well as looming up behind St Paul's Cathedral itself.

The semi-reflective 'fritted' glass cladding is depicted as if it will disappear into the sky, but it is likely to be far more visible in most lighting conditions than the images imply.

Proposed Community Bank, High Street, Maldon

March 2011 - Success at VCAT

Our VCAT appeal (jointly with Save Maldon Streetscapes) has been upheld. VCAT’s principal finding was that the bank proposal is unacceptable and it can be modified to result in an acceptable outcome in terms of heritage considerations. Read press release. Maldon Bank VCAT Media Release 8 March 2011 (PDF) 64.07 kB

February 2011 VCAT has heard the appeal brought by the National Trust and Save Maldon Streetscapes. More...

July 2010 The Mt. Alexander Branch of the Trust has been very active lobbying Councilors of Mt Alexander Shire trying to obtain a better outcome on the design proposal for a new community bank in High Street, Maldon. The heritage overlay in Maldon triggers an assessment against the objectives of the Maldon Design Guidelines, and the objection from the branch and head office was that the proposal does not meet the Guidelines, in particular a very odd verandah detailing including use of rusted steel, and the use of oxidized concrete walls. The design was subsequently amended to provide a more tradiitonal verandah treatment, however the corrugated rusted concrete wall is to remain. The Council’s decision of 22 June was to issue a notice of decision to approve the application. The Trust has lodged an appeal with VCAT.

Norfolk Island Pines, Port Fairy

...following an appeal, added to Victorian Heritage Register

The recommendation by the Executive Director Heritage Victoria to include the pines on the Victorian Heritage Register was appealed by the Shire of Moyne in Ocotber 2010. Together with a number of other parties, The Trust appeared at the hearing. We called Expert Witness Dr Greg Moore. On 1 November 2010 the original recommendation was upheld. Read decision....

State election 2010

November 2010 - Response from major parties

In the lead up to the State election in 2010 we wrote to to the Labour Party, Liberal-National Coalition, and the Greens in order to gauge their commitments on nine important heritage issues. More...

Drill Hall, Victoria Street

Apartment tower to dominate

Image from architects

The Royal Melbourne Regiment Drill Hall in Victoria Street, one of the most elaborately detailed and impressive of the Art Deco Drill Halls built in Melbourne in the late 1930s, is to be restored, but also a host an apartment tower held up on legs put through the roof of the hall itself. The building, which had no heritage protection until the Trust nominated it to Heritage Victoria, was bought by the City of Melbourne for a multicultural centre, but was then passed over to Melbourne Affordable Housing for redevelopment.The Trust argued that the new tower would dominate the drill hall, and that more affordable housing could be provided on different non-heritage site.

Yarra Park

....entered onto Victorian Heritage Register following successful appeal in April 2010

Following a successful appeal by combined efforts of the Trust, The East Melbourne Group and Melbourne City Council, Yarra Park has been added to the Victorian Heritage Register. The Heritage Council determined in April 2010 that Yarra Park is of historical significance as part of the system of parks that Governor Charles La Trobe envisaged surrounding Melbourne. It is also important as the place where the earliest games were played in 1858; as an important Aboriginal ceremonial, camping and contact site; and is also significant for its association with a number of persons of importance in Victoria’s history. More...

Cable Tram Engine House, Fitzroy

This well known landmark on the corner of Victoria Parade and Brunswick Street was demolished just before Christmas 2009.

Originally built in 1886 to house one of the engines that drove one of the largest cable tram systems in the world, it was refurbished in 1936 in an Art Deco style, with a striking tower added. Though part of a heritage precinct, and noted individually, VCAT decided that it was not an essential part of the South Fitzroy precinct, and the changes meant its use as a cable tram engine house was not relevant (a view that one committee of the Heritaeg Council did not agree with, though this was overturned by 2nd committee). Unfortunately, the local listing did not mention it as an interesting example of the Art Deco style, so this aspect, which might have been important, was essentially ignored. It will be replaced by a 10 storey office block, that at least will be stepped back from the street on both frontages, so as not to dominate views of the spire of St Patricks.