Victoria’s Minister for Planning Sonia Kilkenny has approved plans for a 67-storey residential mixed-use development at 400 Queen Street in Melbourne’s CBD, designed by Cox Architecture for Sime Darby Property.
The $495 million project is sited at the city’s northern edge, opposite the Queen Victoria Market and soon-to-be-built Gurrowa Place development, and next door to the Melbourne Terrace Apartments (1994) by architect Nonda Katsalidis, winner of the Australian Institute of Architects’ 2019 Victorian Enduring Architecture Award. The approved scheme will replace an existing multi-storey car park and education facility on the site.
Reaching 250 metres at its highest point, Cox’s design will deliver more than 1,500 dwellings, including 693 apartments – a mix of studios, one- and two-bed apartments – and 900 purpose-built student units. The project also includes 10,100 square metres of office space across levels two–six and 3,400 square metres of retail in the building’s lower podium levels.
Kilkenny commented that the project’s location “right in the heart of the CBD [means] more people can live closer to work, uni, public transport and everything they need.”
In keeping with its CBD context, the ground level of the approved development features a network of publicly accessible laneways and arcades, providing a cross-site connection through to Anthony Street. A colonnade along the Queen Street facade is designed to enhance the pedestrian experience and includes activated edges, raised planters and terraced seating.
Above, the tower form is staggered, with a northern setback intended to visually separate the tower from the neighbouring Melbourne Terrace Apartments.
Plans for the project were lodged in June last year. The state government’s approval involves an $8 million contribution from the developer toward affordable housing across the state.
Source: Architecture - architectureau
