Lovell Chen Architects & Heritage Consultants has been appointed for a $20 million refurbishment of Melbourne’s Royal Exhibition Building – Australia’s first World Heritage Site.
The refurbished building will reopen its Dome Promenade and restore entry through the building’s basement. Visitor access to the Dome Promenade, which provides 360-degree views across Carlton Gardens and the city, has been blocked for more than a century.
Lovell Chen Architects & Heritage Consultants was chosen for the refurbishment project through a tender process, and the practice will work with Heritage Victoria and the federal government to meet conservation requirements throughout the design process. The federal government is funding the project.
“We look forward to opening a new multi-level Royal Exhibition Building experience in 2017 and expect it will become a very popular Melbourne tourist destination,” said Museum Victoria’s CEO Dr Patrick Greene.
“Expanded access and storytelling will enhance visitors’ exploration of the building’s rich history and significance locally, nationally and internationally, along with the rare opportunity to enjoy Melbourne’s oldest city outlook from the top of the dome.”
A depiction of the Royal Exhibition Building Dome Promenade deck, reproduced from the Illustrated Australian News, 6 November 1880.
Image: Museum Victoria
The Royal Exhibition Building, completed in 1880, was designed by Victorian-era architect Joseph Reed, who also designed the State Library of Victoria and Melbourne’s Bank of New South Wales building. The dome of the Royal Exhibition Building is said to have been inspired by the 15th-century Florence Cathedral dome.
The first Parliament of Australia was held in the Royal Exhibition Building on 9 May 1901, and two major international exhibitions took place in the building in 1880 and 1888. In 2004 the building was awarded World Heritage status by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Construction is set to begin in 2016 and the renovated building will open to the public in 2017.
