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That is indeed a MUCH MUCH better outcome and design for that site.
Excuse my ignorance guys. So this site is currently being cleared for the above building? It's actually happening? 130 or 140 Lonsdale??? Two towers or one???
I'm confused.
Construction proper is meant to begin mid this year. I'm unsure whether that means both towers or just 130 Lonsdale for now..
thanks
I took these about a week ago. The clouds of dust were from equipment operating inside the Princess Mary Club.
The two towers are 130 Lonsdale, which is being constructed first and 140 Lonsdale (called Wesley Upper Lonsdale Tower,) which is planned for a later date at 22 levels/15,000sqm.
Charter Hall purchased the whole lot at 118-148 Lonsdale Street from Leightons and the Uniting Church a couple years ago, originally was only one tower. They are still yet to get approval for 140 Lonsdale.
Great, thanks for that.
This has been named "Wesley Place", with site signage updated. Shot from Jones Lane shows the PM Club coming down.
^^Archeological dig underway.
I collect, therefore I am. thecollectormm.com.au
Wesley Church has now joined Scots Church in their destruction of important Melbourne heritage assets, and will be judged more harshly for it in years to come.
@Bilby,
You can't be serious?
So you wanted to preserve the graffitti riddled building that was surrounded by scaffolding (for years), because is was literally falling apart, to be have remained? Too funny.
If so, YOU should have purchased it and preserved it. Put YOUR money where your mouth is. Stop telling other people to preserve buildings just to satisfy your desires. Property owners do what they do which sometimes involves development. The CBD is not a museum. It is a living changing thing. Some historic icons have preservation orders, other stuff does not. Live with it.
The new tower will be a massive improvement. No one apart from you cared about the previous building, unless a piece of it fell on your head, then you cared.....TO SEE IT GO!!
I suggest you move to Paris.
Even better, move to Egypt...was more historical than even Paris
I am 100% serious. This building did have state level heritage protection (as all "historic icons" in the CBD should). And for what it's worth, a good percentage of working buildings in the CBD and inner city are "graffiti riddled". What's your point? Paint doesn't affect the structural integrity of buildings - but maintenance (or lack of it) does.
I'm not accusing the Wesley Church of demolition by neglect, but they sure could have paid a bit more attention to maintaining this unique building over the years, couldn't they?
Everyone cried foul when the Corkman was demolished over a weeked - but when structures are left to degrade over years and decades, suddenly no one can be held accountable?
Well, in this case, we know who the owner was over the whole period of its structural neglect. Hence my comments about future historical judgements about the role of the Wesley Church in the loss of this important piece of women's history in Melbourne.
And finally, I've bought as many historic buildings as I can afford, and saved quite a few more through activist work. How many have you purchased and restored?
The building was falling apart, it was literally a danger to pedestrians.
It had no heritage value, none.
The Wesley Church itself has heritage value, like Scotts Church, both are still here and will remain so.
Not everything old is worth preserving; the Queensbridge Hotel and this one are making way for new buildings. It is what naturally happens in modern cities.
Pick and choose your battles better than this.
Well that's not correct. It did have heritage value. However none of us know enough about the state of the building as well as the costs associated with making it a usable and safe building for the 21st century, to determine if it could have been saved.
Btw. Comparing this to the situation of the corkman pub is ridiculous and helps no one. One had a proper permit and followed the rule of law while the other was a clandestine hatchet job by a bunch of idiots. Some perspective from the ideologues would be fantastic.
Please correct me if im wrong but I believe that the Princes Mary Club had rampant concrete cancet throughout and any attempted restoration wouldve been in the millions and with no guarantee it would be successful.
We will be restoring caves soon.
The cost of full repair and restoration, according to the Heritage Council was in the order of $18 million. Given the uplift available on the site, and the rental value of the completed building(s), it doesn't seem beyond the realms of possibility that the owners could have broken even here.
Since when have churches become profit making entities? They pay no taxes or rates, so what business do they have demolishing community assets and profiteering off the land that they were literally gifted by the government (and hence the people) of Victoria?
"Since when have churches become profit making entities?"
There is huge money in telling people to believe in god. Nothing new.
Churches have always exploited the governments and the peoples generosity.
Regardless of the concrete cancer situation it is still sad to see that building go...it was long one of my favourites.
Piling has commenced:
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