This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
THE Victorian government plans to develop its own high rise office building in Melbourne’s CBD, which would help the Allan government slash the state’s office rental bill as part of budget cuts.
Victoria’s Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) has lodged a proposal for a 17,000 sqm Melbourne CBD office tower rising 23 storeys from the site of the State Public Offices building.
The current circa-1930 nine-level building at 436 Lonsdale Street, in the city’s legal precinct, was most recently used by the Supreme Court until 2021 when it was identified that essential fire safety work needed to be carried out.
The Supreme Court occupied six floors of the building, which contain eight courtrooms used for commercial and common law matters, mediation rooms, registries, chambers, and administrative areas.
A spokesperson for the DTP told Australian Property Journal said the state government is intending to use the new 23-storey tower primarily for office use.
The department said it didn’t have any further details on the building’s use at the current stage, and was unable to answer questions from Australian Property Journal as to what department or departments of the state government would be moving into the building, and if it would represent a reduction or expansion of office space used by the state government.
The plans comes as the government looks to cut costs around office accommodation. Last year it leased around 18,648 sqm of office space in the new 10-storey building, Victoria Place in East Melbourne, which was below its original mandate of 20,000-25,000 sqm.
The application seeks to retain the existing heritage building façade along Lonsdale Street and walls along the east and west elevations, they said.
Plans will initially go through the DTP’s ministerial permits register and be referred to the City of Melbourne’s planning committee, and then go to the Planning Minister.
