West Melbourne latest application adds to the suburb's development appeal
West Melbourne's increasing rate of densification will in time subsume another substantial site, with the expansive Rose Furniture building spanning 512-544 Spencer Street earmarked for redevelopment. Latest to capitalise on the area's march toward high density living are project partners Abacus Property Group, Lechte Corporation and Crema Constructions.
512-544 Spencer Street is the third current Melbourne apartment development for the team. The Eminence at 139 Queensberry Street, Carlton includes 193 residential apartments over 15 levels whilst Luminary in Hawthorn is a more modest development of 22 luxury dwellings.
DELWP are handling the application which would deliver two separate buildings, although three distinct architectural styles have been conceived to break up the development's multiple and substantial street frontages.
512-544 Spencer Street application summary
- Site area: 4,246sqm with 3 street frontages
- Proposed 8 level apartment buildings
- 207 apartments: 72 x 1BR, 135 x 2BR
- 1,026sqm ALDI at ground level
- 3 additional retail tenancies across 518sqm
- 272 vehicle spaces across 3 basement levels
- 171 bicycle spaces
- Terraced courtyard and library/lounge
- Project GFA: 31,175sqm
As was the case with The Eminence and Luminary, Plus Architecture act as project architect for 512-544 Spencer Street.
An architectural language was developed to respond to both the locality’s large scale industrial past, and the fine grain of the emerging residential developments.
The form was broken up into three separate blocks, each with their own take on an expression of vertical blades to describe the residential scale of the buildings. The three separate building languages have been designed to face the three separate street frontages of the site.
Design Statement: Plus Architecture
West Melbourne in full boom
As the torrent of large developments in West Melbourne continues, many more people will invariably call the suburb home over the coming years.
512-544 Spencer Street is the 25th entry for West Melbourne within the Urban.com.au Project Database, with near on 3,300 apartments in play within postcode 3003. Of these, 781 - or just under one quarter - are at construction, pointing toward the future growth spurt that awaits within the suburb.
With Holder East yet to move on its large King Street holding and Perri Projects bidding to rezone a vast section of industrial West Melbourne to facilitate commercial and residential growth, West Melbourne's transformation may well accelerate over current high levels of development.
Whilst apartments will rule the West Melbourne roost, 469 hotel suites and/or serviced apartments are also primed for the suburb with the most recent addition that of Adina Grand signing on as operator of the hotel component within the West End development.
512-544 Spencer Street development team
- Developer: Lechte Corporation & Abacus Property Group
- Builder: Crema Constructions
- Architect: Plus Architecture
- Planning: Planning & Property Partners
- Traffic: Traffix Group
- Sustainable Management Plan: Lucid Consulting Australia
- Waste Management Plan: Leigh Design
- Landscape Plan: John Patrick
