Melbourne Walk, the first new development in Bourke Street Mall for over 50 years and the centrepiece of its revitalisation, is now open.
Knitting together several buildings on a large inner-city site, Melbourne Walk includes 6,295sqm of retail and InterContinental Hotel Group (IHG)’s first Australian dual-branded hotels, each has a distinct identity, a Hotel Indigo and a Holiday Inn, comprising 452 rooms over 9 levels above a 3-level retail podium. New dining and bar offerings include a rooftop bar overlooking Bourke Street.
Global design studio Buchan led the architecture and interior design for the entire project, including the hotels, for client Steadfast Capital. Buchan Senior Associate Hayden Djakic says the development, previously known as The Walk, leverages its premium position on Melbourne’s established north-south pedestrian ‘ant trail’.
“Melbourne Walk is a celebration of the city’s rich and unique identity,” says Djakic. “The design enhances the cross-city pedestrian network and merges retail glamour with the gritty laneway culture of contemporary Melbourne to create a memorable destination.”
A ‘collection of buildings‘
The 3,600sqm site, bounded by Bourke Street, Little Collins Street, The Causeway and Union Lane was originally eight separate buildings and includes four heritage-listed façades. Buchan’s design retains the sense of a ‘collection of buildings’ while consolidating the block into a singular whole.
“It was important to preserve streetscapes and neighbourhood character,” says Djakic.
“The heritage façades of Diamond House and the Public Benefit Bootery on Bourke Street, and the Allans and York buildings on Little Collins Street have been restored. New façades take cues from their historic neighbours, reinterpreting materials and geometry, and the distinctive blade signs that were a lost feature have been reinstated.”
Internally, the notion of separate buildings is reinforced by new arcades and laneways that allow natural light to penetrate deep into the site. Union Lane remains true to its service-lane origins, providing a new canvas for the iconic graffiti street art in one of the city’s most Instagrammed locations. Food and beverage shopfronts on The Causeway support its revival as an established ‘foodie’ laneway.
Distinctive hotels and a quirky history
Hotel Indigo, aligned with the brand, creates a bespoke, local experience with a strong sense of place. The social history of the Melbourne Walk site underpins the design concept, which invites guests to explore their room and make discoveries in the same way they would explore Melbourne city.
The Hotel Indigo interiors reflect the site’s quirky, historic retailers. Sidney Myer’s haberdashery businesses, E W Cole’s ’emporium of everything’ (including its exotic animals display) and the Eastern opulence of James Hosie’s Turkish baths are referenced in fabrics, rugs, glassware, terrazzo and even playful monkey lamps. The material and colour palette mixes shots of Mondrian blue with ceppo tiles and brass highlights.
A striking spiral staircase is the centrepiece of the voluminous, 4-level Hotel Indigo lobby and bar. From here, guests overlook a landscaped courtyard that provides a green, inner-city oasis. The courtyard opens Melbourne Walk’s heart to the sky and delivers light deep into the arcade below via lantern-like skylights.
The Holiday Inn focuses on the joy of travel for all, complemented by warm, natural materials and textures and lush greenery for a calm, home-away-from-home feel that welcomes families.
Guests are welcomed by the signature ‘Hello’ wall across from reception, setting a friendly tone that continues throughout the flexible, open-plan ground floor. This inviting space features a generous lounge, full-service bar, and all-day dining with an open kitchen designed to easily adapt to peak periods and guest needs in the iconic Melbourne Walk destination.
Celebrating Melbourne’s grit and glamour
The historical references in the hotel permeate down to the arcade and lane, which merge retail glamour with the gritty laneway culture of contemporary Melbourne
A new 9-metre-high arcade connects Bourke Street to Little Collins and is conceived in the grand tradition of the neighbouring Royal and Block Arcades, mirroring their rhythm, volume and light-filled interiors. In a nod to the famed gold-rush era arcades, gold-tinted skylights run the length of the double-height space. Their faceted shape references the gemstones of Diamond House’s past, while marble and brass exude quiet luxury, framing windows that are stages for evolving flagship and specialty retail displays.
The glass-covered east-west cross lane is a finer-grained, tactile experience anchored by brickwork and bluestone in direct response to the existing laneways at either end.
“Melbourne Walk will bring a groundswell of people back into the city to experience the flagship retail, with high-profile retailers already open,” says Djakic. “Add the 900 people who will be staying in the hotels and it will breathe new life into the Bourke Street Mall.”
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