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With a population of 4.4 million people and more continuing to flock to the state of Victoria, Melbourne is the fastest growing city in Australia. If projections hold true, Melbourne will overtake Sydney as the country's largest city by 2056. This population growth is putting pressure on neighbourhoods which are now being targeted with new developments, especially residential towers. Dozens of 200+ metre buildings are either under construction, in sales, or have been submitted to the local government for approval.
Many of the newest developments are positioned within the central business district (CBD), where the neighbourhood's future tallest building has just started construction. The 88-storey Aurora Melbourne Central held its groundbreaking ceremony on October 21, kickstarting work on a development that will bring 941 residential units to the area.
Melbourne's first supertall has also commenced piling. Australia 108 will stand 99 storeys high and contain 1,105 residential units when it opens in 2020. The gold and blue contrast of the condominium mimics Eureka Tower, the current tallest building in Melbourne.
At 241 metres, the emerald-coloured Victoria One and the 69-storey Light House join the ranks of towers under construction alongside Vision Apartments and the Eq. Tower. Though dominated by residential construction, KPMG Collins Square demonstrates that modern office space is also desired in the Victorian capital.
In addition to the many towers under construction, there are a number of projects currently in sales. Elysium will rise one kilometre away from the CBD on the other side of the Yarra River in the urban neighbourhood of Southbank. Sales continue for the 72-storey Swanston Central and the curvaceous Premier Tower, which is set to begin construction as soon as March 2016.
The massive mixed-use West Side Place development will bring a Ritz-Carlton hotel and over 2,500 suites to Spencer Street, joining two other hotel/condo combinations in the works for 25-35 Power Avenue and 380 Lonsdale Street. Elenberg Fraser's Tower Melbourne and the cantilevered design of 97 Franklin Street have both been approved but remain inactive.
Another supertall currently seeking government approval could rise to 317 metres. Queensbridge Tower would take the form of a Wilkinson Eyre-designed residential and hotel building. The potential landmark development joins a swath of other proposals being considered by planning staff, including 295 City Road, 32-44 Flinders Street and Queens Place.
The fate of many proposals making their way through the planning process remains uncertain following several well-publicized changes to local development regulations. New Planning Minister Richard Wynne is tightening laws by introducing updated density and height restrictions for the CBD. The interim laws—in place for one year until permanent rules are created—require setbacks equal to 5% of a proposal's height if greater than 100 metres. Previous discretionary height limits related to air space requirements have now become mandatory in parts of the CBD.
A new plot ratio requirement of 24:1 has also been introduced. That means that if you add up the total square footage of every floor in the building, it cannot exceed 24 times the size of the lot. The current average plot ratio for new towers is 37:1. If these rules were in place when the application for Australia 108 was submitted, the building would have been chopped in half. The regulations will force developers to rethink the constraints of their property, now having to either buy larger plots of land or build slimmer towers.
The amount of density the most recent developments have been allowed would be prohibited in some of the world's most crowded cities, including New York, Hong Kong and Tokyo. The interim regulations were just implemented this September in an effort to curb massive new towers, so the exact impact they will have on the built form of Melbourne remains to be seen.
Stay updated with the various towers under construction, in sales or proposed in Melbourne by visiting the Database files linked below. You can also get involved in the discussion by checking out our associated Forum threads or by leaving a comment at the bottom of this page.
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