Melbourne University

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A nation like Australia should be able to have a sensible, rational, balanced debate on issues like housing affordability – but it seems we cannot because we have the media from hell. 
Mainstream media has been having a feeding frenzy recently over two documents about negative gearing and its impact on affordability – one a leaked report from Federal Treasury and the other a half-finished research paper by Melbourne University economists. 
Both apparently claim that scrapping negative gearing tax benefits would have only a minor impact on home values but at the same time would bring about a major improvement in housing affordability. 
There’s been lots of commentary on the significance of these documents, especially with regard to Federal Government policy, but I have not seen any media reports from writers who have challenged the documents. 
Their findings, apparently, are deemed to be factual and beyond scrutiny. 
The worst contribution to this endless and seemingly fruitless debate about affordability, its causes and its solutions, has come from the Melbourne University research paper. 
My first question about this is: why would the authors publish research that is not yet finished? It is, according to the authors, “preliminary and incomplete”. One of them says that when the research modelling is complete, the results may change, particularly the forecast size of the lift in home ownership. 
Given the sad record of this discussion being blighted by claims, counter-claims, pet theories and silver bullet solutions, why would academics who want to be taken seriously publish something that just adds to the quagmire of confusion because it’s still a work in progress. 
This paper makes some pretty big claims. Three-quarters of households would be better off, home ownership would surge and rents would rise but renters would be somehow better off. 
These are big statements. But they’re not justified or substantiated in any of the reports I’ve read. 
To try to understand why the authors think the suggested policy changes would have the big impacts they claim, I studied reports from six sources, including The Australian, the Financial Review, The Age and The Guardian. 
I’m still waiting for an explanation of the claimed outcomes. And I’m still waiting to come across a journalist who challenged the authors of the report on a number of matters, including their credentials, their motivations, their methodology and their assumptions. 
I’d love to see the mathematics that’s led them to their preliminary and incomplete conclusions. 
Here’s a core question they should be asked: how can you claim that the suggested policy would cause a 30% reduction in rental property supply, and therefore an increase in rents, but also claim that renters everywhere would be better off? 
From my study of media reports, it seems the authors are assuming that a 30% reduction in supply would cause a rental rise of only 2.4 percent – and that the Federal Government would financially compensate tenants for the higher rents that would result. 
Those are massive assumptions. No one in Australian media has challenged them. 
If they’re wrong and there’s no government compensation for higher rents, which would cost billions of dollars according to the report, tenants will be disadvantaged by having higher weekly occupancy costs, which would make it harder to save a deposit to get into home ownership. 
That whole argument falls apart if a future government offers no compensation. 
And keep in mind that other research tells us that last year, without any taxation policy changes to limit the supply of rental properties, house rents rose 7 percent in Canberra, 9 percent in Hobart and 5 percent in Melbourne. 
But, according to the Melbourne University boffins, eliminating one-third of the supply of rental properties would cause rents to change barely at all. 
It’s worth remembering that significantly higher rents resulted when a Labor Government scrapped negative gearing in the 1980s and then had to re-instate it a short time later because of the unforeseen adverse impacts. 
The university paper claims that property values would fall only 1.2 percent but somehow this insignificant decline in house prices would generate a massive rise in home ownership – from 66.7 percent to 72.2 percent. 
How have they come up with these very precise but unexplained estimates? 
They claim 30 percent of rental properties would be freed up and bought by Australians who would otherwise have rented. So we’re asked to accept that a 1.2% drop in prices would turn those who can’t afford to buy into people who now can do so. 
That’s another massive assumption that no one has challenged. 
Think about it. The Asking Price Index for Sydney houses sits at $1,356,500, according to SQM Research. A 1.2 percent reduction in prices would bring that down to $1,340,222. Apparently $1.356 million is unaffordable but $1.34 million is affordable to heaps of people. 
But those are Sydney prices. Let’s look at a city that’s a little less extreme, like Brisbane. The Asking Price Index for the Queensland capital sits around $614,000 and a 1.2 percent reduction would bring it down to about $607,000. 
The report authors want us to believe that this small change will cause a “surge” in home ownership rates in Brisbane. 
In a parallel universe, maybe, but not in the real world. 
There are other aspects of this paper that ought to be challenged – and would be if journalism played a part in the reporting of the housing industry. 
The claim that only the “rich” benefit from negative gearing is outrageous - and patently false, according to ATO data. 
There’s no explanation in any report I’ve read for the claim that 76 percent of households would be better off under the suggested policy change. We’re told only that the authors used “an economic model”. 
Surely Australia as a nation can do better than this. But while we’re saddled with such mediocre media and clueless politicians, we’re doomed to having this festering issue drone on for years to come. 
Terry Ryder is the founder of hotspotting.com.au ryder@hotspotting.com.au 
twitter.com/hotspotting
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terryryder-YECXbqmri2

Melbourne University negative gearing study needs to be challenged over its methodology and assumptions: Terry Ryder

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Melbourne coffee institution St. ALi will begin serving students and staff of the Faculty of Fine Arts and Music representing owner Salvatore Malatesta.
James Lockwood and Rick Berry of Fitzroys negotiated the long eight-year lease for the 16 sqm hole-in-the-wall with a 56 sqm outdoor deck area on behalf of the University of Melbourne.
“We utilised our extensive hospitality database to undertake a targeted approach to quality coffee operators, which resulted in lease negotiations with St. ALi within 24 hours of the space hitting the market,” Lockwood said.
The space is one of a number of brand-new food and beverage tenancies Fitzroys has been marketing in the heart of the Melbourne arts precinct on behalf of the University in line with the its $200 million campus transformation of the Victorian College of the Arts and the Conservatorium of Music, creating the Faculty of Fine Arts and Music.
Malatesta’s involvement in the coffee industry began in earnest in 1996.
“I opened my original coffee cart at the University of Melbourne when I was a student, so we are very excited for St ALi to be heading back to where it all started, and feel there is great synergy of the sustainability principles that both the University and the St ALi brand represent,” Malatesta said.
Other deals recently concluded by Fitzroys for the University include the main café at Southbank Campus, to be opened late 2020, and event bar and foyer in the new Conservatorium of Music, Axil Coffee at the new Webs building at the Parkville Campus, and Mr Ed Café at the Werribee Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences Campus, by Four 10 Hospo Group who also run Leroy’s Café in Newport.
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j.ballantyne1990-6AQqhLzZaK

St. ALi joins others in leasing University of Melbourne retail space

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The University of Melbourne will run a subject focusing heavily on SMSFs.
‘This is a great opportunity for the SMSF industry’, said DBA Lawyers’ director Bryce Figot, who is also a senior fellow at the University of Melbourne and is the subject’s coordinator. ‘Practitioners can now spend an intensive five days studying the latest developments, rules, policies and strategies relevant for SMSFs and receive University recognition,’ said Mr Figot.
The subject, titled Taxation of Superannuation, will run on 22, 23, 24, 27 and 28 February 2017. ‘Given the magnitude of recent changes to superannuation, which hopefully should be finalised and legislated by February for a 1 July 2017 start date, I feel the timing of the subject could not be better,’ said Mr Figot.
‘I believe Taxation of Superannuation is the first time a Victorian University has had a subject so relevant for those in the SMSF industry’ added Mr Figot.
Although run via the University's law school, the subject is also part of the Master of Taxation and the Graduate Diploma in Tax programs and is designed to be of tremendous use for accountants and financial planners.
The subject has a quota of 30 students.
For more information:
<a href="https://handbook.unimelb.edu.au/view/2017/laws70267" target="_blank">https://handbook.unimelb.edu.au/view/2017/laws70267</a>
<a href="https://www.law.unimelb.edu.au/study/masters" target="_blank">www.law.unimelb.edu.au/study/masters</a>
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Property 101: Melbourne University to run subject focusing heavily on SMSFs

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The University of Melbourne is once more chasing the right to create another significant student housing complex.

Located at 625-631 Swanston Street, the project has been dubbed Lincoln Square South and finds itself in the middle of Melbourne's evolving student precinct centred around Carlton's Swanston Street stretch. Lincoln Square South is the latest development that will help support the 50,000 students that visit the institution's Parkville campus.

Submitted last month, the Hayball-designed 14 level building includes capacity for 656 students.

Carrying a cost of development just shy of $70 million, the project requires demolition of three conjoined sites that house buildings dated from 1922 to 1955. An adjoining historic former warehouse building at 11-13 Lincoln Square will be reworked to become a learning hub.

<h2>625-631 Swanston Street application summary</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/uomswan.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="UoM's new building in context. Planning image: Hayball"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="387" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/uomswan.jpg?itok=Qla2KML-" title="UoM's new building in context. Planning image: Hayball" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>UoM's new building in context. Planning image: Hayball</figcaption></figure><ul>
<li>Site area: 2,568sqm</li>
	<li>Proposed: 14 level tower </li>
	<li>656 beds: 161 x studio, 154 x twin studio, 341 x cluster</li>
	<li>2,098sqm of communal area</li>
	<li>430sqm learning hub</li>
	<li>Ground floor retail space: 250sqm</li>
	<li>Provision for 20 vehicles and 172 bicycles</li>
	<li>GFA: 20,756sqm</li>
	<li>Estimated cost of development: $68,262,000</li>
</ul>
<h2>In Hayball's words</h2>

<blockquote>
The vision for the Lincoln Square South project is to establish an new exemplar for managed student accommodation within the City that brings together academic support with residential life. The facility will seek to set a new benchmark for quality accommodation operation, and to provide a unique addition to student accommodation offerings in Melbourne.

The residence will support a contemporary scholarly community, with academic leadership and quality professional support, delivering a new Hall of Residence on the South side of the Parkville campus. Central to the project is the alignment of a new and unique scholarship program with a quality residential experience. The new accommodation will support up to 60 scholarship students.

The architectural form provides a contemporary response to the University tradition of courtyard and cloister with student common spaces and upper level rooms arranged around a landscaped inner court.

The facade composition and materials incorporates a high quality of finishes and detail, reinforcing the emerging street wall civic scale of Swanston Street and which is complementary to the industrial heritage streetscape on Lincoln Square south.
</blockquote>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/uomswan1.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="625-631 Swanston Street's internal open space. Planning image: Hayball"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="641" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/uomswan1.jpg?itok=3gDG8iY4" title="625-631 Swanston Street's internal open space. Planning image: Hayball" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>625-631 Swanston Street's internal open space. Planning image: Hayball</figcaption></figure><h2>Swanston Street's appeal - or lack of</h2>

625-631 Swanston Street's arrival continues to boost the design merits of Swanston Street.

The early 2000s saw a raft of poorly executed student housing projects line the thoroughfare, turning vast stretches of Carlton's Swanston Street into somewhat of a merit free design wasteland, with the Ian Potter Museum of Art being the exception. In recent times though the general quality of projects proposed or delivered in the area has risen markedly.

Piccolo's award-winning Upper House and the RMIT Design Hub began to turn the design tide, with a number of other projects also waiting in the wings.

Should 625-631 Swanston Street gain approval, it would join the Jackson Clements Burrows-designed <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/projects/558-566-swanston-street-carlton">558-566 Swanston Street</a> and the at construction <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/buildings/599-605-swanston-street-carlton">599-605 Swanston Street</a> in lifting the overall design qualities of the area.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/uomswan2.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Swanston Street perspective of the development. Planning image: Hayball"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="492" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/uomswan2.jpg?itok=1RF7WZvm" title="Swanston Street perspective of the development. Planning image: Hayball" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Swanston Street perspective of the development. Planning image: Hayball</figcaption></figure><h2>625-631 Swanston Street development team</h2>

<ul>
<li>Developer: University of Melbourne</li>
	<li>Architect: Hayball</li>
	<li>Town planning &amp; landscape design: Tract Consultants</li>
	<li>Structural: Webber Design</li>
	<li>Geotechnical: GeoAust</li>
	<li>Services: Lucid Consulting</li>
	<li>Building Surveyor: Mckenzie Group</li>
	<li>Fire Safety: Omnii</li>
	<li>Traffic: Impact</li>
	<li>Facade Engineer: BG&amp;E</li>
	<li>Accessibility: MGAC</li>
	<li>ESD: Wood &amp; Grieve Engineers</li>
	<li>Heritage Consultant: David Bick</li>
	<li>Waste Consultant: Leigh Consulting</li>
	<li>Acoustic: Octave</li>
</ul>
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silvermb

UniMelb adds Swanston Street to their student accommodation portfolio

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Melbourne University and Australian Catholic University are expected to host two new buildings that will further enhance their respective academic capabilities. With both projects at planning assessment, either build is still some time from fruition.

In Carlton, The Graduate Union of the University of Melbourne is planning to expand their services provided by way of a new building accommodating 136 studio apartments. Gladstone Terraces which fronts University Square at 197-235 Bouverie Street will be retained as part of the development, and remain largely in tact.

Three floors to the rear of the site will host a new cafe, administration and membership/function spaces, with the remaining floors dedicated to residential apartments. The height of the project is 37.6 metres, with a gym, laundry and 33 car parks found within a five level basement.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/image4_12.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="University Square perspective of the proposed building. Planning image: MGS"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="347" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/image4_12.jpg?itok=ewxgkkFe" title="University Square perspective of the proposed building. Planning image: MGS" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>University Square perspective of the proposed building. Planning image: MGS</figcaption></figure>Purchasing the site during 1957, the Graduate Union have near on 60 years later chosen MGS Architects to lead the regeneration project. 

Carrying a development cost of $20 million, The Graduate Union hopes that 197-235 Bouverie Street will in due course be able to better service the expanding accommodation needs for postgraduate, alumni and visiting academics. 197-235 Bouverie Street is unique in that it becomes the first project in recent years to service this very niche requirement.

In nearby Fitzroy, Australian Catholic University is pursuing a sizeable redevelopment of its St Patrick's campus. Located at 115 Victoria Parade and 28-42 Young Street, the project's centrepiece is a planned tower at 59.45 metres in height.

Lyons Architecture have been installed as design lead, with the enhanced Development Plan set to guide future planning permit applications onsite.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/image1_6.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Lyons have created a new Victoria Parade showpiece. Planning image: ACU"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="262" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/image1_6.jpg?itok=uVcqgFMv" title="Lyons have created a new Victoria Parade showpiece. Planning image: ACU" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Lyons have created a new Victoria Parade showpiece. Planning image: ACU</figcaption></figure>The tower's likely internal layout is set to include teaching and learning spaces, office accommodation and a student hub set above 7 levels of basement car parking. 

Currently an at-grade car park, 115 Victoria Parade will arc over the existing campus building at 28-42 Young Street, providing it with three additional levels. It's expected that the new build will add approximately 25,000sqm of space to Australian Catholic University's campus.

Described as a landmark mixed-use development within associated planning documents, the tower is a key plank in Australian Catholic University's planned growth in student and teacher numbers, as well as increased research activities. By 2020 it's expected that 10,700 equivalent full-time students will be on campus.
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Two tertiary institutions line up new build projects

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One of the city's more significant design contributions has taken its place within the grounds of Melbourne University.

In the heart of the <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/new-apartments/parkville-vic">Parkville</a> campus, the new Arts West Redevelopment was unveiled at the turn of September and primarily consists of a new $66 million teaching and learning building. Arts West also shapes as a key placemaking project, allowing the immediate area to tie-in by way of a newly landscaped plaza which references surrounding buildings.

The building itself which is the work of both <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/architects/arm-architecture">ARM Architecture</a> and <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/architects/architectus">Architectus</a>, is adorned by flat metal bands that are seen as a topographical form from ground level. When viewed from a distance, a relief over the facade depicts <a href="https://arts-west.arts.unimelb.edu.au/arts-west-exterior/arts-west-facade-competition">artefacts typical of the bronze work found in the Luristan region</a> of Iran dating between 900 and 700 BC.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/img_9382.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Arts West exterior"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="387" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/img_9382.jpg?itok=l6yCcx5F" title="Arts West exterior" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Arts West exterior</figcaption></figure>With sections of the building yet to open, the seven-level complex provides a new home of the Bachelor of Arts. According to the <a href="https://arts-west.arts.unimelb.edu.au/#teaching-and-learning">project's webpage</a>, "The new spaces have been purpose designed, and include facilities for collaborative and project-based learning, interactive learning (including a cinema- quality interactive theatre), a media laboratory, and lecture and discursive spaces.

There are two specialised teaching rooms to combine the great potential for object-based learning presented by the Cultural Collections with our responsibilities for the care and conservation of these precious objects."

Arts West has also eyed off a 5 star Green Star Education v1 Design rating.

A recessed ground level looks to reference existing stone archways within the Parkville campus, albeit with more modern materials.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/img_9378.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Arts West's recessed ground level"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="387" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/img_9378.jpg?itok=hnKEULlO" title="Arts West's recessed ground level" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Arts West's recessed ground level</figcaption></figure>The surrounding area consists of new spaces, with extensive seating and planting softening the project's edge. Visible along the Arts West perimeter is an embossed concrete path which references the Wurundjeri people.

The new landscape works are in the process of being extended to the Melbourne Brain Centre, providing an enhanced link between the two buildings.

In terms of sustainability, Arts West reflects Melbourne University's drive to become a far more sustainable campus. Initiatives such as natural ventilation, water capture and thermal control all aid the building in its goal of achieving a 30% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to an equivalent BCA code compliant building.

See further images of Melbourne University's Arts West redevelopment below.
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Arts West fits best for Melbourne University

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The proposed new Melbourne Conservatorium of Music (MCM) on Sturt Street is shaping to become much more than a cutting edge venue. While the project has been given coverage to date across a range of mediums, very little has been said regarding the project playing an integral part in the wider push to enliven the Arts Precinct and Southbank as a whole.

With plans for the $105 million complex now on display, it's an apt time to explore the projects intentions for Southbank at large.

Covering a site area of 5,100sqm, project lead John Wardle Architects have been joined by landscape architects ASPECT Studios in conceiving a site-specific response, with the aim of encouraging activity across the site and the wider area. Tying in with initiatives such as City of Melbourne's <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/news/transforming-southbank-boulevard-and-dodds-street">Transforming Southbank Boulevard</a> project, MCM will create a new active linear axis between Sturt Street and Dodds Street.

Dodds Street has been earmarked by the City Of Melbourne as a prime candidate for conversion to a pedestrian thoroughfare, providing Southbank with additional public space.

Located across from the West Block of the Melbourne University's adjoining campus, this new connector will see the reconfiguration of a number of existing onsite buildings in order to deliver plazas, lawns, more intimate parks and courtyards, set around a common pedestrian pathway. It's expected that when these outdoor spaces (including performance areas) are not utilised by university students, they will be made available to outside organisations.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/image38_5.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Exterior perspective. Image: Image: John Wardle"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="267" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/image38_5.jpg?itok=lWdk-YlY" title="Exterior perspective. Image: Image: John Wardle" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Exterior perspective. Image: Image: John Wardle</figcaption></figure>According to the advertised documents, the MCM's design is in part based upon four key themes held within the wider ranging <a href="http://archive.creative.vic.gov.au/files/ea1c6732-f4f6-4c04-b8c0-a2d0012231f0/Melbourne_Arts_Precinct_Blueprint.pdf">Melbourne Arts Precinct Blueprint</a>. They are:

<ul>
<li>Bring life to the streets</li>
	<li>Create a ‘Melbourne’ experience</li>
	<li>More to see and do</li>
	<li>Make connections</li>
</ul>
Further, the following design principles have been instilled within the MCM design:

<ul>
<li>Green Spine: Green infrastructure such as semi-advanced tree planting and water sensitive urban design. Rain gardens will tie the open space together as a green spine</li>
	<li>Landscape Structure: The East and West ends of the open space will be designed as urban anchors. Materials and landscape form will be responsive to the design and/or strategic objectives of Sturt Street and Dodds Street</li>
	<li>Landscape Character: The open space will be comprised of three segments responding uniquely to their surrounding context such as street and buildings interface</li>
	<li>Intimate Spaces: Provide a series of small-scale spaces that provide comfortable locations for individual comfortable spaces for day to day use such as lunch, having coffee, studying and reading</li>
	<li>Performance Fields: The design will incorporate a level of spatial flexibility</li>
	<li>Pedestrian Movement: The open space will provide a strong connection between Sturt Street and Dodds Street for pedestrians. Secondary linkages into the adjacent VCA campus will provided. The plans for building 877 will provide a future food or beverage outlet and bicycle storage</li>
	<li>Frontages &amp; Sight Lines: The interfaces with both Sturt Street and Dodds Street will have considered design responds. Critically the interface with Dodds Street will be designed in coordination with the City of Melbourne</li>
</ul>
<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/image36_3.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Landscape plan for the project. Image: John Wardle/ASPECT Studios"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="352" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/image36_3.jpg?itok=VbkcEiXx" title="Landscape plan for the project. Image: John Wardle/ASPECT Studios" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Landscape plan for the project. Image: John Wardle/ASPECT Studios</figcaption></figure>To facilitate the above principles, demolition will be required across two sensitive and historic buildings.

Building 877 fronting Sturt Street will be partly demolished, while building 878 is set for full demolition. This demolition will allow for an expanded public realm and the activation of the site's edges with a cafe and end of trip facilities earmarked for the overhauled spaces. Both buildings are partially included under heritage overlay (HO389).

Heritage aside, the new MCM looks to have squared away both its tertiary and public intentions, while also adding itself to the growing list of remedies designed to bring Southbank's somewhat flailing public realm up to scratch.

Construction expected to commence during 2017.
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Southbank street life flourishes under the new Melbourne Conservatorium of Music proposal

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One of the most significant additions to Melbourne’s world class Architecture in 2014 is a building full of expectation and promise. Some buildings have more expectations on them than others. When a new school of architecture such as the new Melbourne School of Design is built the design stakes are rarely higher. Every aspect of the building will be continually measured analysed, photographed, critiqued and criticized for the life of the building.

The Melbourne School of Design is the outcome from a competition process won by John Wardle Architects (Melbourne) and NADAAA (Boston). The MSD is built upon a site of high strategic importance being centrally located within Melbourne University’s Parkville campus and surrounded by a context of large educational buildings from a variety of decades.

The new building replaces the previous Architecture building by Brian Lewis that was completed in 1964 and also the Old Commerce building with the exception of the historic facade.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/img_3243.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="MSD eastern entrance"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="773" src="/sites/urbanmelbourne.info/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/img_3243.jpg?itok=RLabGMbB" title="MSD eastern entrance" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>MSD eastern entrance</figcaption></figure>As a side story, the historic facade of the Old Commerce building was in fact designed by one of Melbourne’s most prolific and important architects Joseph Reed. It was originally attached to the Bank of New South Wales building in Collins Street, until that building was demolished in 1932 and the facade was transplanted to the University of Melbourne site. The MSD is now the third building to be adorned with Joseph Reed’s Renaissance Revival facade.

With such high expectations what has been the result?

From the exterior this building is most defined by the curtain like facade which is crafted out of perforated zinc panels. This metallic veil is complemented by highly refined and sublimely detailed concrete panels which provide a sculpted but robust feel which is carried into the ground floor thoroughfare. It is important to note that the zinc panels are not merely decoration, they are strategically placed to work functionally as solar shading. The Architects here have resisted the temptation to create a single gesture building by continuing the veil around to the southern facade.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/img_3256.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Eastern stair and facade"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="580" src="/sites/urbanmelbourne.info/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/img_3256.jpg?itok=En81ZLnB" title="Eastern stair and facade" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Eastern stair and facade</figcaption></figure>This southern facade may be seen as the buildings greatest weakness. The pixilated window placement and the exposed concrete panels create a very flat facade composition particularly when compared with the dynamic zinc veil. This is not to say that this is bad architecture rather that it is less potent than the rest of the building.

To some degree the subdued Southern facade is made up for by the interesting intersection between wall and landscape at ground level. A continuous glazed wall playfully evokes a fabric skirt which is having a Marilyn Monroe moment, interrupting the vertical of the wall.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/img_3233.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Southern facade at dusk"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="435" src="/sites/urbanmelbourne.info/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/img_3233.jpg?itok=d-OJ-hHc" title="Southern facade at dusk" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Southern facade at dusk</figcaption></figure>If the Southern Facade is the greatest weakness, undoubtedly one of the greatest strengths is the dramatic atrium space. This has to be one of Melbourne’s very best interior spaces.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/img_0339.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="A stunning interior"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="870" src="/sites/urbanmelbourne.info/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/img_0339.jpg?itok=rGmmv14m" title="A stunning interior" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>A stunning interior</figcaption></figure>The centre piece of this architectural composition is the floating stalactite like structure which dramatically descends from the coffered ceiling. Housing a single classroom space on each level this timber sculpture is exquisite in its precision and form. The impressive timber volume hovers tantalizing close to the work space below it, inviting the occupier to reach out instinctively.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/image31.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Various internal aspects"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="631" src="/sites/urbanmelbourne.info/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/image31.jpg?itok=jxw4bETl" title="Various internal aspects" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Various internal aspects</figcaption></figure>One of the more unusual design decisions within this building is the widespread use of wire mesh which clings to the periphery of the atrium. Used on mass, this wire takes on a net like character that at times seem at odds with the precision of the timber panels. The benefit of this wire is that it does not reflect sound the way a glass balustrade might. It also allows a greater felling of openness and connection from the circulation spaces to the atrium which is unparalleled in Melbourne.

Ultimately this building must be a building about learning in order to be a success. It is in this regard that the building must have it’s greatest impact.

The more formal studio spaces have been placed along the southern side of the building to get the most use from the gentle southern daylight. Vertical surfaces throughout this zone have been naturally equipped to double as pin boards to facilitate work to be displayed and reviewed. Whilst the building may not have the variety of learning spaces of say the Swanston Academic Building, there are several options for the type of spaces students can occupy.

The opportunity for students to learn from the building itself has also been a strong consideration. Structural elements at several points have been left exposed to be studied by curious observers.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/img_3548.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Library with expressed ‘wishbone’ concrete beams"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="773" src="/sites/urbanmelbourne.info/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/img_3548.jpg?itok=D-fQHs3p" title="Library with expressed ‘wishbone’ concrete beams" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Library with expressed ‘wishbone’ concrete beams</figcaption></figure>A building such as this demanded excellence and it is hard to argue that this building is anything other than successful. What has been delivered is a hardworking piece of architecture which is in places exquisite and dramatic whilst at others is stripped-back and experimental. It is not a single idea but a collection of ideas to be read interpreted and analysed for years to come.

Michael Smith is Director of Melbourne architecture firm Atelier Red + Black. This article originally appeared on <a href="http://theredandblackarchitect.wordpress.com/">The Red and Black Architect blog</a>..
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redblackarchitect

Red + Black Review: Melbourne School of Design

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Not all that long ago Urban.com.au highlighted the <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/news/melbourne-universitys-building-infrastructure-upgrade">impressive building infrastructure program</a> that Melbourne University had and is undertaking, culminating with the Melbourne School of Design. A short few weeks later two additional projects have surfaced, each of which are set to make significant impacts upon their surrounds.

<h2>Arts West Redevelopment Project</h2>

Works are expected to begin prior to year's end on Melbourne University's <a href="http://arts.unimelb.edu.au/arts-west-redevelopment-project">Arts West Redevelopment Project</a>. Located mid campus, the redevelopment will see a new $66 million building designed by ARM and Architectus take shape over the next two years. With an expected GFA of 9,142sqm, Kane Constructions has been awarded the early works package with the likelihood that commercial construction company will also undertake main works with completion scheduled for July 2016.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/image57_0.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Arts West Redevelopment Project. Images courtesy ARM"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="245" src="/sites/urbanmelbourne.info/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/image57_0.jpg?itok=Ek7DxzYz" title="Arts West Redevelopment Project. Images courtesy ARM" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Arts West Redevelopment Project. Images courtesy ARM</figcaption></figure>Aside from the new facilities slated for the project, the most significant aspect of the Arts West project is its highly distinctive facade, as best described by ARM Architecture:

<blockquote>
IMAGINE YOU MAKE A BIG BUILDING…

You put a band of windows around each floor and cover it with white slats that look like exterior venetian blinds, but deeper. Next, you browse a museum of interesting objects and get inspired to make a huge statue of some ancient Grecian women. One is wielding a formidable shield. You press the statue into the venetians on your building. They give way as gently as dry foam so the women make a perfect imprint of themselves.

It looks right. So then you make a statue of some people dancing at a corroboree and you press that into the façade too. Then a Cretan horseman. Then Diana, the Roman Goddess of war, and an ancient coin as big as a car. Finally, you grab the building by one corner and twist the venetians into a swirl of waves. They look a bit like isobars in 3D.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/141117_arts_west_objects_3.jpg" rel="gallery-all"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="209" src="/sites/urbanmelbourne.info/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/141117_arts_west_objects_3.jpg?itok=C4IOdjwo" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Destined for Arts West</figcaption></figure>Sound fun? We’ve been doing exactly this—with virtual statues and virtual venetians—to design the new Arts West building at Melbourne University. Construction begins in 2015 to open in 2016.

Design architect Peter Bickle says the virtual images (statues) are interpretations of objects from Melbourne University’s cultural collection. “They reflect the output of human endeavour from around the world and they allude to the concept of object-based learning, which is used throughout the Faculty of Arts.”

Step one was to photograph each object then convert the images to greyscale using Photoshop Z-Depth. Greyscale uses percentages of black to record an object’s depth, so we could then stretch it into an accurate 3D model using 3D Studio Max .

We used Rhinoceros 3D to create virtual models of the building and the objects and then press them together. With Revit , we created the drawings that a contractor will ultimately use to calculate measurements and cut the venetians to shape.

How innovative is it? “On that scale, and with the use of Z depth technology, it’s quite innovative”, says architect Tim Pyke. “We’ve used a similar technique on other projects, such as the wave effect on the façade of Brisbane Central. Swanston Square Apartments is also similar, except that the shapes are vertical and attached to balcony walls so they didn’t involve greyscale.”
<cite>ARM Architecture </cite>
</blockquote>

<h2>Carlton Connect - Former Royal Women's</h2>

In recent months Melbourne University and Architectus have sought endorsement for preliminary plans that would see significant works to the former Royal Women's Hospital fronting Swanston Street and Grattan Street. The existing central building will be retained with expanded flanks to both east and west allowing for the advancement of the <a href="http://www.carltonconnect.com.au/">Carlton Connect Initiative.</a>

Championed by Melbourne University, Carlton Connect seeks to "Develop an innovation and entrepreneurship precinct based on multi-sectoral collaboration with a focus on sustainability and social resilience" according the the project website.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/image64mu.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Carlton Connect. Image courtesy Architectus"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="226" src="/sites/urbanmelbourne.info/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/image64mu.jpg?itok=-7vMagR9" title="Carlton Connect. Image courtesy Architectus" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Indicative Carlton Connect images courtesy of Architectus</figcaption></figure>To facilitate this a number of uses have been envisaged for the site, with exhibition, function and office space, educational, research and development areas all earmarked for the project. Extensive landscaping will also open the project to enhanced public interaction and accessibility at street level.

<blockquote>
Carlton Connect, a joint project, will help find solutions to critical local and global sustainability problems that will underpin Australia’s long-term prosperity.

The Carlton Connect facility – a large-scale facility to be constructed in the heart of the South Carlton precinct which will enable the Carlton Connect partners to physically co-locate their activities, thus resulting in substantially enhanced rates of innovation.
<cite>Carlton Connect report, June 2014</cite>
</blockquote>

City of Melbourne via the Future Melbourne Planning Committee have resolved to green light to the project, although the final decision will be at the hand of State planning authorities.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/img_2092.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Leicester Street student accommodation progress"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="387" src="/sites/urbanmelbourne.info/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/img_2092.jpg?itok=epymVY8b" title="Leicester Street student accommodation progress" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Leicester Street student accommodation progress</figcaption></figure>As for what Melbourne University currently has under construction, seen above is 108-128 Leicester Street. As previously outlined the new 648-bed student accommodation building will be ready come Semester 1, 2016. Presently the tower is at level four with head contractor Watpac making rapid work of the build.
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