Melbourne skyline changing as nest of cranes reshapes our city

Skyscraper construction worth more than $15 billion is rising across central Melbourne, reshaping the city’s skyline forever. Check out all the work that’s taking place.

Skyscraper construction worth more than $15 billion is rising across central Melbourne, reshaping the city’s skyline forever.

A record number of more than 120 cranes have appeared on building sites this year, with four cranes atop the Collins Arch project site alone.

Residential apartment building accounts for about 60 per cent of the new tower construction. Most of the rest is for office, government or hotel use.

The latest RLB Crane Index showed 123 cranes hovering over central Melbourne. The data excludes the Metro and West gate tunnel projects.

Since then, new buildings such as the Shangri La Hotel twin towers at the corner of Latrobe and Exhibition streets and the Quincy Hotel at the corner of King St and Flinders Lane have started to take shape.

Crane operator Vinnie Del high in the sky above Melbourne. Picture: David Caird

Domenic Schiafone of quantity surveyors Rider Levett Bucknall, which compiles the index, said the Melbourne-wide crane total was more than 220.

“There is a lot of residential growth going on there,’’ he said.

Melbourne’s costliest construction project — at $2.8 billion — is Melbourne Square which is rising from an old car park on Kavanagh St, Southbank. The complex will feature six towers for residential and hotel use and a 3,700 square metre public park.

Second is the $1.9 billion Melbourne Quarter complex in the Batmans Hill precinct.

One Melbourne Quarter, the first of three commercial towers, opened last October while two other buildings are due for completion in mid-2020. A fourth tower is waiting for state approval.

Collins Arch, often referred to as The Pantscraper, occupies a whole city block on Collins St. The $1.25 billion project, which will include Melbourne’s first five-star W Hotel, is expected to open its doors early next year.

A spike in tower construction has secured Melbourne’s place as the nation’s skyscraper capital.

Australia 108 will become Melbourne’s tallest building upon completion in the middle of next year. Its 317m height will surpass Eureka Tower by 20 metres.

Across the Yarra, the almost complete Aurora Melbourne Central on Latrobe St is now the CBD’s highest building — at 270.5m.

Melbourne Quarter development at the corner of Flinders St and Wurundjeri Way.

Probuild Victorian managing director Luke Stambolis said his teams were working on Aurora Melbourne Central, West Side Place Stage 1 and the Victoria Police building at 311 Spencer St.

“I’m upbeat for the building industry,’’ Mr Stambolis said.

“It continues to provide a great future for thousands of people in Victoria. There’s no stopping Melbourne.”

Property Council figures show that Melbourne’s CBD provides $67 billion in annual economic output, and houses 82,000 people and supports 317,500 jobs.

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The council Victorian executive director Cressida Wall said much of the current construction had been approved many years ago and that planning scheme changes introduced in 2016 have slowed CBD development.

Developers now fear that few projects will take the place of the current batch of construction.

Ms Wall said she was encouraged by the state government’s announcement to amend planning changes before the end of the year.

“However, the urgency of addressing a dramatic slowdown in both the commercial and residential development pipeline is becoming more apparent and, as current projects come to completion, those cranes will not be replaced.”

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@IanRoyall