Empty Melbourne office towers could be turned into apartments
A radical proposal would see empty office towers turned into apartments in a bid to revitalise Melbourne’s CBD. And that’s not the only big idea to help the city through the coronavirus crisis.
VIC News
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Empty office towers would be turned into apartments in a dramatic effort to bolster Melbourne’s ailing CBD.
White Night-style projections would also be beamed on to heritage landmarks and big discounts offered to lure locals to multicultural precincts.
A high-powered committee tasked with revitalising the CBD will discuss the proposals this week.
It includes trucking magnate Lindsay Fox and restaurateur Chris Lucas.
Lord Mayor Sally Capp, who has formed the advisory board, said converting empty offices into residential buildings could revitalise the city as more people continued working from home and shopping online even when the pandemic was over.
A similar measure was used to revitalise Melbourne’s city centre in the early 1990s.
“This global pandemic has knocked us for an economic six,’’ Cr Capp said.
“Melbourne has transformed itself in the past, and we need the best of thinking to do that again.
“We can stimulate economic activity, create jobs, build more homes and boost the number of people in our city by finding ways to encourage retro-fitting of commercial buildings into residential accommodation.
“This will also ease the burden of the housing shortage.
“Residential conversions have been done successfully before in the city and could be used to increase the availability of affordable housing.”
The Sunday Herald Sun last week revealed Melbourne’s CBD is in crisis with the number of people in the city falling from a million a day to as few as 50,000.
Some workers aren’t expected to return with the commercial vacancy rate to hit at least 10 per cent.
Cr Capp’s high-level committee — also including businesswoman Elizabeth Proust and social entrepreneur Rebecca Scott — will meet for the first time this week.
Its first agenda items will also include a new city passport campaign offering discounted food, drink and entertainment so local tourists pining for an overseas trip can “travel the globe” at precincts like Chinatown and Lygon St once restrictions ease.
Projections and lighting like those used in the hugely successful White Night event and Sydney’s Vivid festival would showcase Melbourne’s heritage buildings and return life to the city at night.
“With modern lighting technology it is possible to showcase important landmarks and improve safety at the same time,’’ Cr Capp said.
“We can want to assist building owners to clean, repair and restore their buildings and use lighting installations to share the stories behind the facades.”
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