Melbourne & Australian Architecture Topics

Aparently the notorious Queensbridge hotel is closing down and an apartment tower is proposed.

I thought originally that the hotel was spared during Southbank's development as it was a heritage building but apparently it only remains as it has survived as a viable hotel.

While it isn't great architecturally it is a fairly large example of a 1920s hotel in the stripped classical style (I quite like the way that it addresses an unusual shaped site and its width with a unusual angle and corner splay as well as the balanced symmetry of the giant order pilasters, the door, the bold cornice and stylistic restrained parapet). It is also of the few surviving interwar buildings or hotel/s in the Southbank area.

However there is no heritage overlay, so the facade is not likely to be included in a new apartment complex unless the developer wants to keep it.

Does anyone know the history of the hotel and think the facade or any of it for that matter is worth keeping ?


photo from Flickr (kevwhelan)



Thoughts ?

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Australian Terrace

I think it's beautiful....blood drenched, but beautiful. Architecturally, I'd be sad to see it go.

The facade aside there isn't alot left of the original pub to save since the QBH makeover, so I wonder how much heratige value is left (I would prefer the retention of the facade)? From a nightspot point of view I will shed no tears for the loss of QBH.

It is nothing special, but neither is anything else in the immediate area. It is pleasant looking and it is nice to keep some visible history in an area that has little. While not exactly what I think you mean by building history William Pitt, in pre QBH days, the hotel was a favoured watering hole by mail workers who worked at the now demolished nearby International Mail Centre. I went to QBH for special event night shortly after it opened. It was a great venue for its time. If nothing has been done inside, it must quite dated now.

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http://highriser.blogspot.com.au/

The hotel began life in 1889 as the Fall's Bridge Hotel in what was then Moray Street. The street was re-named as Queensbridge and the hotel was renamed the Queen's Bridge Hotel. The building (considered a deathtrap as there was a varnish works operating at its rear) was replaced by the existing building in 1926 when the hotel was acquired by Carlton & United Breweries. The firm of Peck & Kemter (Heidelberg Town Hall, Capitol Theatre) was engaged to transform the Victorian building, providing a three-storeyed stuccoed neo-Classical framework, with neo-Egyptian reeded capitals to the pilasters. Below the cantilevered verandah, the exterior was finished with glazed tiling in mottled cream with brown stripes. In 1940 further updating was carried out by CUB.

Robin

Many thanks Robin, thats more interesting than I'd first thought. I'd never heard of the Falls Bridge Hotel much less seen photos of it. I haven't seen any neo-Egyptian details on QBH, so I'm guessing then they were removed as part of the CUB update in the 40s is that right ? Would certainly be interesting to see them in their former state.

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Australian Terrace