The Victorian government announced the scheme with two sentences in its housing statement, but industry figures and stakeholders say it’s likely to fall well short.
The post pandemic reality poses many challenges for the Melbourne CBD and the future of older commercial buildings. This transformative period, defined by strong demand for premium office space, has resulted in a lot of sub-prime office space being severely underutilised,” says Cath Evans, Victorian executive director at the Property Council of Australia.
“The overall quality is really high, and this is a real credit to the industry as many of the projects were both designed and realised during the pandemic. There is a focus on place – many of the buildings strongly relate to the context they are in, both through how they are sited and in the materiality. There is also an increase in First Nations engagement, which is creating a real richness to the projects.”