Heritage Architecture

This category is for any built conservation project or study developed in accordance with the Australia ICOMOS Burra Charter, or any adaptive reuse of a heritage structure.

Jury chair report

There is great excitement when something that has always been in front of us, turns around and surprises. This year’s winners provided this excitement in spades.

Our jury followed the Burra Charter’s guidance in understanding place and assessing cultural significance in history, science, aesthetics and society, including spirituality. How did that get built? Why does it look like that? What is being repaired? Whose story is being served if we keep this grand dame (or old dog) going? Who are we forgetting?

The projects with tough back-of-house demands, impressed us. If the work was under the hood and we couldn’t easily see it, if it employed rare craftsmanship, if there was contemporary ingenuity that supported tradition, if it boosted its neighbourhood – we favoured it.

The shortlist was robust and the generosity of seasoned architects giving us personal tours was humbling. We all responded to projects that operated within the metaphorical constraints of a cranky internal combustion engine but had a secret turbo charge.

This year’s winners exhibit a variety of impressive achievements including: the research and development of new systems that are invisible and in plain sight, innovative approaches to structure and fire separation, elevating the atmospheric quality of a location, long-overdue acknowledgement of pre-Colonial heritage, meticulously detailed as-built documentation, upskilling tradespeople with old craft techniques, logistical constraints which would be calamitous if wrongly performed and the stamina of enduring various bureaucratic hurdles that pertain to heritage. What you get – is more than what you see. Congratulations to all winners and those shortlisted.

Category sponsor

Queen Victoria Markets Shed Restoration A - D, H - I by NH Architecture with Trethowan Architecture Wurundjeri Country

The great strength of NH Architecture with Trethowan Architecture’s restoration of Sheds A-D and H-I at the Queen Victoria Market is in the invisibility of its outcome. It is a clever future-proofing solution that celebrates the vibrancy of this much-loved market space.

The restoration’s primary objective was to repair and refurbish the open-air sheds while improving the market experience for all stakeholders. The challenge of the brief was to achieve this outcome without closing the market, resulting in a staged and in-situ solution.

Extensive stakeholder consultations enabled traders and the public to provide input and shape the project’s direction. The project team focused on upgrading services and restoring the structural elements to enhance the shed’s longevity along with providing a new, insulated roof that creates a sustainable outcome within the historic market precinct.

The jury was greatly impressed by the seamless integration of the outcome, preserving the chaos of the market while providing traders with improved access to power, water, and mobile food storage units that were co-designed with the traders. The project successfully balances the restoration of significant architectural heritage with the needs of contemporary market operations setting a new benchmark for future restoration projects located within bustling urban environments.

Practice team: Nick Bourns (Project Director), Tiffany Tan (Project Lead), Mark Stephenson (Heritage Director), Claire Miller (Senior Heritage Consultant), Renee Riley (Senior Heritage Consultant), Gareth Wilson (Senior Heritage Consultant), Thuyai Chung (Project Team), Grace McKellar (Project Team), Michael Hughes (Project Team), Jenna Dunt (Project Team), Michael Strack (Project Team), Pip Hodge (Project Team), Astrid Jenkin (Project Team), Guled Abdulwasi (Project Team), Devin Pullyblank (Project Team), Ali Rahimi (Project Team), Adam Sznyter (Project Team), Matthew Lochert (Project Team), Grant Mclagan (Project Team), Richard Le (Project Team), Sabrine Koo (Project Team), Thomas Sheehan (Project Team), Vincent Biscocho (Project Team), Nicole Warwick (Project Team), Dale Schlosser (Project Team), Liam Oxlade (Project Team) Consultant / Construction team: Trethowan Architecture (Engineer), Mott MacDonald (Engineer), Du Chateau Chun (Building Surveyor), Architecture and Access (Accss Consultant), WSP (Waste Consultant), Extent (Archeologist), Red Fire (Fire Engineer), Tract (Town Planner)

Builder: McCorkell Constructions

Photographer: Dianna Snape

Award for Heritage Architecture – Conservation

Fitzroy Town Hall Ceiling Conservation by Conservation Studio Australia Wurundjeri Country

The restoration of the Fitzroy Town Hall Ceiling is marvellous. This project represents an outstanding example of how multidisciplined, insightful and researchbased conservation can bring an important heritage site back to its former glory.

The Fitzroy Town Hall is a culturally significant building in Melbourne. Its elaborate plaster ceiling was in dire need of restoration, having suffered significant water damage and resulting mould contamination. The team remediated water ingress by introducing a siphonic drainage system. The original ceiling in the Council Chamber was a painted paper on hessian lining nailed and glued to timber boards. Covered in the 1930s due to water damage, this ceiling was removed to reveal a beautiful but deteriorated paper ceiling.

The restoration work involved conserving, stabilising and restoring 24 ceilings, which were progressively deteriorating, resulting in the temporary closure of the Main Hall and Council Chamber. Three main stabilisation methods were employed, including pinning the plaster ceiling back to existing joists, spray application of resin adhesive, and stitching the moulded ceiling embellishments using copper wire. The restoration project showcases the successful combination of traditional and modern conservation techniques, resulting in the preservation of cultural heritage and an important landmark for future generations.

Practice team: Harrison Jess (Project Architect), Fabiola Solari (Graduate of Architecture), Ned McDonald (Graduate of Architecture), Cara Banks (Graduate of Architecture), Dan Blake (Graduate of Architecture)

Consultant / Construction team: Robert Bird Group (Structural Engineer), Melbourne Quantity Surveyors (Quality Surveyor), International Conservation Services (Materials Conservator)

Builder: Stokes Rousseau Pty Ltd and Ivy Constructions Australia Pty Ltd

Photographer: Derek Swalwell

Award

for Heritage Architecture – Conservation

Prahran Arcade Facade Conservation by RBA Architects and Conservation Consultants

Wurundjeri Country

The earthquake in 2021 that damaged buildings in Chapel Street, also threatened to shear off the highly ornamented facade of the nearby Prahran Arcade, a fabulous example of the 19th-century shopping arcade, built at the end of Melbourne’s land boom.

The building was still magnificent with ruinous grandeur before RBA Architects and Conservation Consultants’ beautiful restoration, the tours of duty with various embattled tenants, nailed to it like war medals. It is testament to the ambitious but failed vision of a rare breed for the time – a private female speculator. The building literally struggled to get steam going (Turkish Baths were proposed) and the banks foreclosed it within seven years. Dan Murphy established his wine cellar there. But decades of neglect gave it a seedy vibe – good enough for storage, artist studios, and movie sets with menace in the plot.

The jury was impressed with the specially developed render, the craft of hand-pulled plasterwork, and the creative use of a balcony floor to structurally pin the facade back to the building.

We often bemoan that quality of buildings lost to spreadsheets – the “they don’t make them like they used to” sentiment. This owner believes the numbers say otherwise. Investing in the restoration of this grand dame is good for business. We can’t wait to see what he does next.

Practice team: Roger Beeston (Design Architect), Deirdre Heffernan (Project Leader), Phillipa Hall (Design Leader), Margaret Nicoll (Conservation Technician), Lachlan McMullin (Graduate of Architecture), Meher Bahl (Graduate of Architecture)

Consultant / Construction team: Design Project Group (Structural Engineer), Glowing Structures (Lighting Consultant)

Builder: Abode Restoration

Photographer: Thurston Empson

Award for Heritage Architecture – Conservation

Royal Exhibition Building - Promenade by Lovell Chen Wurundjeri Country

Visitors to the Royal Exhibition Building (REB) can enjoy spectacular elevated views from the UNESCO World Heritage Building for the first time in 100 years, thanks to Lovell Chen’s recent restoration efforts. Designed by Joseph Reed for the 1880 and 1888 international exhibitions, the REB is a magnificent Victorian landmark. The main building is the only international survivor of a Great Hall from a major industrial exhibition of the period.

Lovell Chen, renowned for their ongoing restoration work on the REB, recently reinstated the 360-degree roof promenade deck and conducted conservation works on the south facade and drum dome.

Many structural and conservation challenges were met along the way. A cupola was remarkably removed in one piece to install a new lift and steel stair in the west pavilion, where the original lift had been, and Lovell Chen made the bold decision to significantly increase the size of the original promenade to ensure its future viability.

It is a great responsibility to work on a UNESCO World Heritage Building, but

Lovell Chen’s skill and deep understanding of the building has led to a thoughtful response that will no doubt be enjoyed by many future visitors to the Royal Exhibition Building.

Practice team: Kai Chen (Design Architect), Anne-Marie Treweeke (Project Architect), Milica Tumbas (Project Principal), Maxwell Bracher (Architect), Stuart Hanafin (Architect), Iulia Vrancianu Danila (Architect), Dan Blake (Architect), Natasa Vuletas (Documentation), Harry Jess (Architect), Peter Lovell (Director, Principal Heritage), Anita Brady (Senior Heritage Consultant)

Consultant / Construction team: WSP (Structural Engineer, Civil Consultant, Fire Engineer), Arup (Electrical Consultant, Mechanical Engineer, Hydraulic Consultant, ESD Consultant, Lighting Consultant), du Chateau Chun (Building Surveyor, DDA Access), Marshall Day Acoustics (Acoustic Consultant), Plancost Australia (Quality Surveyors), Ontoit (Project Manager - Design), Lovell Chen (Heritage Consultant)

Builder: HBS Group Pty Ltd

Photographer: John Gollings

Award for Heritage Architecture – Creative Adaptation University of Melbourne Student Precinct by Lyons with Koning Eizenberg Architecture, NMBW Architecture Studio, Greenaway Architects, Architects EAT, Aspect Studios and Glas Urban

Wurundjeri Country

The University of Melbourne Student Precinct mediates several generations of buildings constructed between 1888 and 1972. Addressing Grattan Street, the original 1888 building was appended by multiple structures, most notably the 1939 Frank Tate building designed by Percy Everett. The ERC and Doug McDonell buildings were added in 1968, including an elevated plaza and monumental staircases linking the ERC and 1939 Buildings. The plaza submerged Frank Tate.

The jury were impressed by the deft interpretation and adaption of this complex urban condition into a coherent company of spaces. The informed conception of First Nations cultural heritage is evident in various aspects of the project, including the Welcome Ground and Welcome Terrain that flow throughout the precinct, and central Tanderrum Space reinstating the water story of the original Bouverie Creek.

The student precinct’s urban response replaces the elevated concrete plaza with solid ground that respects and preserves the heritage structures. The old gymnasium in Frank Tate opens up into a double-height market-hall space, creating new perspectives and uses in the old building.

Similarly, the selective demolition and purposeful additions to the 1888, ERC and Doug McDonnell budlings suggest a methodology for campus interventions to celebrates the journey of discovery that characterises the University of Melbourne.

Practice team: Lyons with Koning Eizenberg Architecture, NMBW Architecture Studio, Greenaway Architects, Architects EAT, Aspect Studios and Glas Urban (Design Architect)

Consultant / Construction team: DCWC (Project Manager), Slattery (Cost Consultant), Irwin Consult/WSP (Structural Engineer), Lucid (Services Consultant), McKenzie Group (Building Surveyor), Aurecon (ESD Consultant), BCG (Facade Engineer), Dobbs Doherty (Fire Engineer), Schuler Shook (Theatre Planner), Marshall Day Acoustics (Acoustic Consultant), CHW (AV Consultant), Aspect Studios and Glas Urban (Landscape Consultant), Aspect Urban + Public (Wayfinding Consultant), Lovell Chen (Heritage Consultant), GTA Consultants (Traffic Engineer), Irwin Consult/WSP (Waste Consultants)

Builder: Kane Constructions

Photographer: Peter Bennetts

Commendation for Heritage Architecture – Conservation

Doherty House by RBA Architects and Conservation Consultants

Country: Bunurong

The restoration of Doherty House in Tarneit is a significant achievement in Victoria’s heritage preservation. The remnant fabric was perilous, destroyed by fire in 1969, rubble walls rotating outwards, and missing lintels readied for catastrophic collapse. An exhaustive analysis of the ruins enabled vegetation removal and repair work. The approach combined traditional and digital conservation techniques. The result maximised fabric retention, cultural heritage value, and set the stage for potential adaptive re-use, providing a striking interpretive feature in an otherwise unimpressive suburban development.

Builder: Abode Restoration

Photographer: Thurston Empson

Commendation for Heritage Architecture – Creative Adaptation

Albert Park Primary School Performance Hub by Searle x Waldron Architecture

Country: Bunurong

The 1884 Wesleyan Church at Albert Park Primary School is an absolute gem of a project. A simple move of reversing sightlines across an amphitheatre-planned building solved several problems for the school. Searle x Waldron Architecture removed ad hoc additions, polishedup window hardware and created a singular piece of joinery that functions as seating, rehearsal room and amenities. The incredible thing, that this perfectly functional outcome also accomplishes, is hardly glamourous – fire separation with a previous non-complying boundary condition. A genius solution for a public school on a shoe-string budget.

Builder: Eastern Property Services

Photographer: Peter Bennetts