Sean Car

Sean Car

Managing Director & Editor

Latest articles by Sean Car

Premier’s public rebuke over work-from-home misses the mark

February 24th, 2026 - Sean Car

Premier Jacinta Allan’s decision to publicly release and promote her letter rebuking the City of Melbourne over its position on mandated work-from-home rights has added heat, but little light, to an already nuanced policy debate.

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Australia’s largest Antarctic art exhibition opens at RMIT

February 18th, 2026 - Sean Car

A sweeping new exhibition exploring more than a century of Australian artistic engagement with Antarctica has opened across two major Melbourne venues.

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Thousands rally in CBD during Israeli President’s Melbourne visit

February 18th, 2026 - Sean Car

Tens of thousands of protesters filled Melbourne’s CBD on February 12 as Israeli President Isaac Herzog concluded his official visit to Australia, with large crowds gathering outside Flinders Street Station before marching to State Parliament.

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Cohealth appoints new chair as GP review looms over future of inner-city clinics

January 27th, 2026 - Sean Car

Community health provider cohealth has appointed former Scope chief executive Kate MacRae as its new board chair, as an independent review into the organisation’s general practice model and finances continues amid uncertainty over the long-term future of several Melbourne clinics.

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Councillors back expanded Safe City Camera policy after lengthy debate

January 27th, 2026 - Sean Car

Melbourne councillors have endorsed the City of Melbourne’s draft Safe City Camera policy following a protracted and at times tense debate that stretched for more than an hour at the Future Melbourne Committee meeting on December 2.

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Council divided as City of Melbourne reverses support for CBD injecting room

January 27th, 2026 - Sean Car

A heated and deeply polarising debate erupted at Melbourne Town Hall on November 25 last year as councillors voted to overturn the City of Melbourne’s long-standing support for a medically supervised injecting service (MSIS) in the CBD.

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Shangri-La Melbourne fit-out stalls as 2026 opening looks increasingly unlikely

January 27th, 2026 - Sean Car

The long-vacant Shangri-La hotel tower in Melbourne’s east end appears no closer to opening, casting fresh doubt over previous expectations the five-star venue would welcome guests in 2026.

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Garden State Hotel to add 300-seat rooftop garden above Flinders Lane

January 16th, 2026 - Sean Car

One of Melbourne CBD’s busiest pubs is set to grow upwards, with Garden State Hotel unveiling plans for a new two-level rooftop venue overlooking the city.

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Bird’s Basement marks a decade of world-class jazz in Melbourne’s CBD

January 15th, 2026 - Sean Car

Hidden down Singer’s Lane just off La Trobe St, Bird’s Basement has spent the past decade quietly shaping Melbourne’s live music landscape.

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Melbourne CBD transformed into Manhattan for filming of Empire City

January 13th, 2026 - Sean Car

Melbourne has been turned into New York this week as Hollywood blockbuster Empire City filming across the CBD, with entire streets transformed into scenes straight out of Manhattan – including NYPD patrol cars, New York-style traffic lights, US postal boxes and swapped-out street signage.

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Final days of State Library Victoria’s summer kids’ festival promise stories, games and creativity

January 12th, 2026 - Sean Car

Families have just a few days left to enjoy State Library Victoria’s lively Library on the Lawn Kids Festival, with the final instalment running this week from January 13 to 15 on the Swanston Street forecourt.

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Saturday Night Fever set to light up Melbourne with reimagined disco classic

January 6th, 2026 - Sean Car

Collins St is preparing to sparkle this summer as a major new production of Saturday Night Fever brings the heat of 1970s disco to Melbourne’s historic Athenaeum Theatre.

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Hypetap moves into historic Swann House on Flinders Lane

January 2nd, 2026 - Sean Car

One of Australia’s fastest-growing creative agencies is set to make its new home in one of Melbourne’s most historically significant CBD buildings, with Hypetap signing on as the inaugural tenant at the newly refurbished Swann House on Flinders Lane.

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Mini waste compactors prove a big win for Melbourne’s laneways

December 22nd, 2025 - Sean Car

A world-first waste collection system trialled in some of Melbourne’s smallest laneways is already delivering major improvements to cleanliness, recycling and amenity in the CBD, with the City of Melbourne confirming strong results from its new network of mini garbage compactors.

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CBD bubble tea chain Top Tea fined for banned plastic straws at Swanston St store

December 17th, 2025 - Sean Car

Bubble tea retailer Top Tea has become the first business in Victoria to be fined for breaching the state’s single-use plastics ban, after EPA Victoria found prohibited plastic straws and stirrers being offered to customers at its Swanston St store.

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Melbourne to “sparkle” as 500,000 revellers expected in the city for New Year’s Eve

December 15th, 2025 - Sean Car

Melbourne is preparing to welcome more than half a million people into the CBD for New Year’s Eve, with the City of Melbourne unveiling its biggest program yet featuring rooftop fireworks, laser shows, live entertainment and four major Celebration Zones across the city.

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Greenline milestone: first stage opens at Birrarung Marr as the city’s signature river project edges forward

December 15th, 2025 - Sean Car

The City of Melbourne has reached a landmark moment in its decade-long effort to transform the Yarra River’s north bank, officially completing Stage One of the Greenline Project at Birrarung Marr – the signature initiative of former Lord Mayor Sally Capp.

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Five councillors forced to exit Comedy Theatre tower debate over donation conflicts

December 3rd, 2025 - Sean Car

Five City of Melbourne councillors were forced to leave the chamber ahead of deliberations on a major redevelopment above the Comedy Theatre after declaring campaign donation conflicts.

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Lord Mayor calls for urgent overhaul of developer bonuses as $495m Queen St tower wins council backing

December 3rd, 2025 - Sean Car

A $495 million mixed-use tower overlooking Queen Victoria Market has won unanimous backing at Town Hall, but only after Lord Mayor Nick Reece used the decision to call for an urgent overhaul of Melbourne’s developer “bonus” system for office space.

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City Square roars back to life with surprise ALWAYS LIVE concerts

November 28th, 2025 - Sean Car

After eight years behind construction hoardings, Melbourne’s City Square made its long-awaited return – and it did so in true Melbourne style, with a surprise rock-and-roll performance that drew hundreds into the freshly upgraded precinct.

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