Melbourne & Australian Architecture Topics

Does anyone know what is happening re: Lyric Theatre in Bendigo ?

I heard the National Trust fought to save it, but the Bendigo Bank is going ahead and demolishing the facade.

This would be a very sad loss if true. It forms part of the very significant historic Pall Mall streetscape

This webcam shows the Lyric facade still standing to the left of stage 1 of the development.

http://bblhq.bendigotelco.com.au/


And a "render" of its IMO uninspired glass replacement, which I believe is part carpark, part 1960s style "urban plaza".



I'm sure they could have integrated the facade into their plans.

What happens now ?

I hate seeing buildings like this lost, because once they are gone, they can never be replaced.

Could someone move the facade, perhaps to a university campus, like they did with the old Collins Street facade of the Bank of New South Wales ... or will it be lost forever ?[/img]

From a business perspective I think this shows Bendigo Bank to be losing it, they used to be solely about community and Bendigo but now as they move Australia wide they've certainly lost the community feel and seem happy to disregard that community's fabric.

I think they would have been happy to move the bank which bears the city's name to Melbourne Docklands if the National Trust had got its way.

As it is, this new headquarters is on a much smaller scale to their Docklands office.

I am unsure what you mean by "1960's style urban plaza".
I cannot recall any "urban plazas" in the 1960's.
At least not until the very late 60's.

Wesfarmers just snapped up Coles and all its bits and pieces.
They started a a Western Australian farmer's co-op.
......'twas ever thus.....................................................

No, they were very much in vogue from as early as 1962 ...

CRA Building, BHP House, AMP House - all built in the 1960s and all had prominent urban plazas.
http://www.walkingmelbourne.com/building427.html
http://www.walkingmelbourne.com/building468.html
http://www.walkingmelbourne.com/building476.html

It may not have been until the early 70s that they became council planning policy, but it was popular in New York from as early as the 1950s - see UN Headquarters for example.