New face on the Block after arcade restoration

A MELBOURNE walk way has been rediscovered after a major facelift to the Block Arcade.

Grant Cohen in the Block Arcade. Picture: Mark Wilson

A MELBOURNE walk way has been rediscovered after a major facelift to the Block Arcade.

Built in 1892, the arcade had a laneway called Block Court which was closed off for decades but has been restored by new tenant Bendigo Bank.

The Cohen family, famous for founding the Godfrey’s vacuum cleaner business, bought the Block Arcade for an estimated $80 million in 2014.

The family has now spent a considerable amount of extra cash restoring the massive hand-laid mosaic floor and replacing old and inefficient lighting.

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Block Arcade managing director and Cohen family spokesman Grant Cohen said that period features of Block Court such as the ornate ceiling and terrazzo floor have been revealed after many years.

“It’s equal to anything anyone would see in Manhattan in some of those beautiful old art deco buildings, the bank has done an incredible job in bringing it back to its former glory,” he said.

Master tailor Adriano Carbone has a sweeping view of the arcade from his shop. Picture: Mark Wilson

Some businesses moved on after the Cohens took over, but new ones have arrived, including the Art of Dr Seuss gallery.

The popular Hopetoun Tea Rooms will continue trading from its famous Collins St premises, but by October is due to open another 200-seat room in the Block’s basement.

Mr Cohen said that improvements such us sprucing up the mosaic floor, the biggest in the southern hemisphere, added to the Block’s allure and foot traffic had doubled in recent times.

“That’s the starkest thing you recognise now when you walk into the Block now, how reflective the floor is, how beautiful it is,” he said.

“It’s all about the theatre. When you come into the Block Arcade you’re not just buying something, you’re getting a shopping experience.”

Master tailor Adriano Carbone, who recently moved into a new big shop overlooking the arcade, said the location couldn’t be beaten.

“When you come up here it’s like walking into a Versace or Armani store, it’s got the wow factor, and that’s what this location has done for us,” he said

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@JMasanauskas