Council buys masonic hall to expand popular shopping village
A Melbourne council has beaten residential developers to a historic ex-masonic hall at the north-east edge of a popular retail precinct.
Maribyrnong City Council paid $2.25 million for 1 Willis Street, Yarraville.
At the north-west corner of Canterbury St, the 776 square metre holding sits less than a block from the Sun Theatre on Ballarat St and the Anderson St retail strip.
With a brick warehouse largely built to boundary, the property was held by the private lodge since 1981, when it paid $48,500.
Irreplaceable civic site
Neighbouring council-owned land, 1 Willis St will be amalgamated as part of a broader social infrastructure precinct.
The building – which would unlikely be permitted in today’s environment with no setbacks in part – will be retained and repositioned.
Structural remediation, safety works, and essential service upgrades are needed.
The purchase aligns with state government plans to remove the adjacent Anderson Street level crossing by 2029.
Car-free retail centre
With the Masonic Hall deal, council can link Canterbury St as a walkway from the Yarraville train station to Willis St, passing the public piazza opened in 2012 outside the Sun Theatre, which permanently replaced a section of Ballarat St.
Under the Level Crossing Removal Project – via an application lodged by Victoria’s Big Build – Anderson St, Yarraville Village’s primary retail spine, will by 2029 be closed to vehicular traffic to create a larger pedestrianised community plaza with outdoor dining and expanded green space (continues below).
Future vision
The Masonic Hall’s ultimate form will be determined through the Yarraville Community Facilities Feasibility Study, which council should complete this financial year.
The process, which will include a public consultation, will evaluate how 1 Willis St and nearby council-held properties can be reconfigured into an integrated creative hub, multi-use community space.
A civic facility is another option.
Market value
Council paid true market value for the property which was offered for public sale via an expressions-of-interest campaign which closed in June.
Gross Waddell ICR’s Michael Gross, Alex Ham and Glenn Ye acted for the Freemasons Title Custodian Company Ltd.
Zoned Neighbourhood Residential Zone 1, it was marketed for its mixed-use development upside.
Yarraville is seven kilometres west of Melbourne’s CBD.
Also this week realestatesource.com.au is reporting the Freemasons sold an aged care home in neighbouring Footscray to another operator.
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