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Docklands will get a taste of Marvellous Melbourne as the rejuvenation of the heritage-listed 1889 NO.2 Railway Goods Shed creates a new village-style precinct of shops and cafes.
Dubbed Village Street, the precinct will be part of the commercial offce redevelopment of Goods Shed North by Equiset announced today by State Planning
Minister Justin Madden.
Equiset, a Grello Group Company, has entered into a development agreement with VicUrban, the State's sustainable urban development authority, to develop the
northern half of the Goods Shed between Bourke and Collins Streets, opposite Telstra Dome.
Construction will start immediately on the $60 million project and is expected to be completed in the second half of 2009.
Equiset managing director Lorenz Grollo said: "The Goods Shed North will emphasise the continuity of community use on the site and ensure the flow of people
that brings an area to life. It is a landmark event as it will incorporate a unique cosmopolitan alfresco restaurant and dining experience for Docklands. Melbourne's leading hospitality operators will be involved from the outset of this dynamic development."
"The landscaped retail and café frontage along Village Street will integrate those facilities with the forecourt and similar facilities on offer at Equisets National Foods building across the street. This development will give Docklands a vibrancy and character that makes the most of its history and unique location."
Mr Grollo said the basis of the 5-Star Green Star environmental rating target would be the state-of-the-art technology and ecologically sustainable design initiatives inside an exterior brought back to its original state.
"An open plan, central bay with 12 metre high ceilings will be surrounded by mezzanine side bays," he said. "Features such as active chilled beams, displacement HVAC system, a gas fired cogeneration plant, rainwater collection and reuse, absorption chiller and peak energy demand reduction will mean future tenants will be able to minimise their environmental impact and reduce operating costs, while enjoying a prime Docklands location fronting both Collins and Bourke Streets."
VicUrban CEO Pru Sanderson said she was confident the design by Elenberg Fraser Architects would complement and enhance plans for the southern end of the shed, between Collins and Flinders Streets, and neighbouring Docklands sites.
"The design even has the potential effectively to knit the northern and southern ends of the historic shed back together, with the use of a transparent 'lantern building' intended to create the illusion of a continuous building where the Collins Street extension currently divides the shed into two," Ms Sanderson said.
Equiset was established in 1998 as a member of the Grollo Group. From its inception, Equiset has taken challenging sites and conditions and found creative
planning and design solutions that add value, lower construction costs and deliver world class design aesthetics.
Railway Goods Shed NO.2 on Bourke Street was built in 1889 to accommodate the increased traffic in the railway yard. Its original length of almost two city blocks and the grandiose architecture of its front offices indicate the scale of operation of the railway yards during the nineteenth century, and the importance of the railway service in the development of Victoria.
Other major Equiset projects include the National Foods headquarters building across the street from Good Shed North and the Intercontinental Hotel refurbishment at the Rialto on Collins Street. Next year Equiset is scheduled to begin construction of the $300 million Monash Village project at the Monash University campus, Caulfield.
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