Little Bourke St hotel changes backed

A long-approved hotel development on Little Bourke St is a step closer to construction after City of Melbourne councillors unanimously backed amendments to the planning permit at their July 21 Future Melbourne Committee meeting.

The amended application relates to 620–632 Little Bourke St, on the western edge of the CBD, where a multi-storey hotel has already been approved above and around a significant heritage building.

The existing permit, issued in December 2023, allowed the partial demolition of the heritage-listed former CitiPower substation and construction of a residential hotel. The latest amendment seeks to allow the demolition and reconstruction of the eastern heritage wall along Cleve Lane, reduce the basement area, reduce car and bicycle parking, and make internal layout changes.

The applicant and owner is The Trustee for 638LB Trust, represented by Planning & Property Partners, with CHT Architects as project architects. The development has an estimated cost of $31.18 million, with no change in cost as a result of the amendment.

Planning consultant Paul Little, speaking on behalf of the applicant, said the project had been through a “fairly long gestation” involving detailed engagement with the Melbourne Design Review Panel, council planners, heritage advisers and referral bodies.

He said the amendment did not represent a fundamental departure from the design principles that underpinned the original approval, but had been pursued after further work on construction logistics.

Mr Little said retaining access to Cleve Lane during construction was a major consideration, as the laneway provided access not only to the subject site but to neighbouring buildings and several hundred car spaces.

He said the applicant was seeking to temporarily dismantle the eastern wall adjoining Cleve Lane and reconstruct it using the same brickwork, with improved detailing, to allow the project to be delivered safely.

“This has involved detailed engagement with council’s heritage consultants and advisers, planners, and the referral bodies,” Mr Little said.

He said the applicant intended to start the project in either late 2026 or early 2027.

The site is in the Capital City Zone and is affected by several design and development overlays. The building is listed on the City of Melbourne’s Heritage Places Inventory and categorised as “Significant”.

Council officers said heritage policy generally discouraged full or partial demolition of significant buildings unless exceptional circumstances could be demonstrated, but accepted that the eastern wall issue met that test due to safety risks and the need to maintain legal access to Cleve Lane.

The Conservation Works Plan requires archival recording to document original details and sets out methods for restoring and replacing windows, structural elements and services forming part of the brick wall. It also requires original bricks to be reused where possible.

The council’s deputy planning chair Cr Phil Le Liu said the amended proposal reduced the project’s overall intensity, including reducing hotel rooms from 207 to 196, cutting car parking from 22 to 10 spaces and reducing the basement from two levels to one.

He said communal facilities would increase from 152sqm to 254sqm, while the approved height, setbacks and architecture would remain largely unchanged.

“I really do love the reciprocal flow of electricity,” Cr Le Liu said, referring to the project’s design concept. “It was a very artistic and very good way to actually do it.”

Lord Mayor Nick Reece said the project would be a welcome addition to the western end of the CBD.

He said the amended proposal was “better than the original” due to its reduced intensity and improved internal proportions.

Cr Reece said the main question was heritage, particularly the eastern wall of the former power substation.

“The red brick and the bluestone is part of the fabric and colour palette of Melbourne,” he said, adding that the conservation plan appeared comprehensive.

Cr Andrew Rowse said the project represented a “vote of confidence in Melbourne’s visitor economy”.