In mid-2021, the owners of the historic Nicholas Building in the heart of Melbourne put the landmark on the market.
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Category: Comment
Slave names have no place in modern Melbourne
The City of Moreland in Melbourne’s inner north is named after the late 18th-century Jamaican slave plantation of the McCrae family. Including the suburbs of Brunswick, Coburg and Pascoe Vale, the municipality’s name valorises slavery and colonialism. Moreland’s councillors are considering a new name for the local government area after being made aware of the links.
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War on the demolishers? Probably not, and timing of NSW heritage review is curious
The New South Wales government has released a discussion paper expressing its ambition to review and “modernise” the Heritage Act (1977).
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Stuck in the past: why Australian heritage practice falls short of what the public expects
If communities don’t understand and support local heritage protections, perhaps that’s a reflection on how the system works and not just evidence of a need for public education.
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This symbol of the past must also reflect our present and future
The Royal Exhibition Building could be a key historic landmark of post-pandemic Melbourne.
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Eastern Freeway: A Heritage Commentary
With its latest determination on Melbourne’s Eastern Freeway, it would seem that the Heritage Council is sending a message to the Victorian heritage sector: “evidence needed”.
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Award for Public Space and Cultural Heritage Advocacy At Fed Square
In early 2018, I co-founded Citizens for Melbourne and we launched the ‘Our City, Our Square – for Fed Square, not Apple Square’ campaign. Our team was awarded The Bates Smart Award for Architecture in Media (Advocacy Award), Victorian Architecture Awards, Australian Institute of Architects, 2020.
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Why heritage protection is about how people use places, not just their architecture and history
The roar of the crowd at the stadium. Jostling to see the New Year fireworks in the public square. Captivated by the band at the pub. Meeting mates outside the train station. These experiences conjure sites of importance for each of us.
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One of Melbourne’s worst planning mistakes at risk of being repeated
A development proposal for the Jolimont railyards has the potential to be one of the biggest planning mistakes in Melbourne in a generation.
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Our cities owe much of their surviving heritage to Jack Mundey
Jack Mundey, who has died at the age of 90, was a pioneer of the Australian heritage movement. As well as contributing to labor and environmental politics, Mundey reconceived of the ways that Australians related to their cities and heritage places.
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