flinders street station design competition statement

FLINDERS
STREET
STATION
DESIGN
COMPETITION
STATEMENT
OF KEY
OBJECTIVES
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Flinders Street Station and environs (looking west)
INTRODUCTION
First built in 1854, Flinders Street Station
is a beloved and vital part of Melbourne.
As Melbourne’s main railway station,
Flinders Street is used by more than 150,000
passengers a day, while its iconic heritage
buildings and features have become a part
of the city’s collective consciousness.
As Melbourne and Victoria have grown, a number
of new challenges have emerged for the station
and its surrounding precinct: transport patronage
is expected to double in the next decade and a
new underground metro rail line is planned for
central Melbourne; integration with surrounding
precincts such as Federation Square and the south
bank of the Yarra River is poor; large areas of the
heritage listed Administration Building are in urgent
need of restoration and have not been publicly
accessible for decades; and the western end of
the site is underutilised and offers potential for
new buildings and spaces.
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With entries opening in mid-2012, the Victorian
Government has offered a prize pool of $1 million
for the very best ideas from across the globe to fully
explore the potential of this Melbourne landmark.
This statement of key objectives is the basis of a
detailed design brief to be released as part of the
competition documentation.
On 15 November 2011, Victorian Premier
Ted Baillieu and Minister for Major Projects
Denis Napthine announced an open design
competition looking for the world’s best ideas
to upgrade, restore and reinvigorate the
Flinders Street Station precinct.
FLINDERS STREET STATION DESIGN COMPETITION
Statement of Key Objectives - February 2012
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Platforms (looking east)
O vervie w
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Competition objectives
The guiding objectives of the Flinders Street Station
Design Competition are:
Main dome detail
··
to upgrade the station to its former glory—in
the tradition of other great cities around
the world—as a Victorian and international
landmark and a centrepiece of the Melbourne
Central Business District (CBD);
··
to restore and protect the Administration
Building and other heritage elements with
adaptive reuse of areas of high public interest
such as the ballroom, making them accessible
to the public;
··
to improve all aspects of the transport
function of the station and adjacent transport
modes and cater for significant growth in
transport patronage;
··
to better integrate the station with the
surrounding precincts that have grown
up around it and provide better linkages
between the CBD and the Yarra River;
··
to better utilise the land adjacent to rail
and the air space above rail on the western
portion of the site;
··
to provide significant civic space, while
allowing for a distinctive and memorable
architectural outcome, with a mix of uses; and
··
to provide a value-for-money solution capable
of being (at least partially) self-funding.
FLINDERS STREET STATION DESIGN COMPETITION
Statement of Key Objectives - February 2012
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Platform 2 escalators
Degraves Street underpass
Flinders Street (looking east)
Degraves Street underpass Page 7 of 28
Page 8 of 28 Station precinct (looking north east)
T ransport
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1. Cater for future growth
As Melbourne’s busiest train station, Flinders Street
Station is the hub of the city’s metropolitan radial rail
network. More than 150,000 patrons currently use the
station on a typical weekday, and by 2021 the typical
weekday patronage is forecast to more than double,
to around 400,000. This growth will necessitate
expanding the station’s capacity, which will include
improving patron access to the station.
2.Extend platforms
Platforms currently cater for 6-car trains (platform
length of 160 metres). Some platforms may need to
be reconfigured and provision made to extend them
to accommodate 9-car trains (platform length of 230
metres).
3.Integrate with potential
Melbourne Metro
Under the proposed plans for the Melbourne Metro
underground rail line, there is potential for a CBD
South metro station near the intersection of Flinders
and Swanston streets. Provision needs to be made to
ensure that Flinders Street Station can be adequately
integrated with this proposal.
4. Continue to operate
with minimal impact
The station needs to continue to operate during
construction activities, with minimal impact on trains
and patrons. Design proposals will need to consider
construction adjacent to and over ‘live’ rail, limited
opportunities for structural support, staging and
construction methods.
Booking hall turnstiles
FLINDERS STREET STATION DESIGN COMPETITION
Statement of Key Objectives - February 2012
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Clock tower interior
H eritage
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5.Restoration and use of
Administration Building
The station, and in particular the Administration
Building, is a Victorian and international landmark
which enjoys great public affection. The whole
site is also listed on the Victorian Heritage Register.
With these facts in mind, it is vital to retain the
heritage facade and significant internal elements,
integrate the building with new development, and
restore the building to ensure all areas are used
and valued. An objective for internal areas that
have high public interest, such as the ballroom,
is that they be accessible to the public.
6.Integrated adaptive reuse of
heritage elements
The historical and heritage significance of the site
must be considered as a whole and include the
integration and adaptive reuse of other heritage
elements such as the Banana Alley Vaults and the
Milk Dock.
Pressed metal wall detail
FLINDERS STREET STATION DESIGN COMPETITION
Statement of Key Objectives - February 2012
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Federation Square and station (looking north)
P recinct integration
7.Limit overshadowing of the
south bank of the Yarra River
New building forms must not cast shadows onto
the south bank of the Yarra River for any significant
length of time.
8.Maintain important view lines
New building forms must maintain important view
lines of significant landmarks on the station land
such as the main dome, the Elizabeth Street clock
tower and the south elevation of the Administration
Building when viewed from Southbank. They must
also maintain important view lines of significant
landmarks around the station, such as
St Paul’s Cathedral.
9.Improve connections
between the CBD and the river
A better connection between the CBD and the
Yarra River’s north bank is required. The station
currently acts as a 560 metre barrier separating
the CBD from the river, and only one highly
congested pedestrian path through the station
is provided by the Elizabeth Street underpass.
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10.Princes Bridge entry to the CBD
and connection with
Federation Square
Princes Bridge on St Kilda Road, the premier
river crossing and entry to Melbourne’s CBD,
enjoys views of the open space and forms of
Federation Square and St Paul’s Cathedral.
The Swanston Street (east) elevation of the station
and connection with Federation Square, however,
needs improvement.
11.Queens bridge entry to the CBD
and western end of the site
The western end of the site is particularly
constrained by the complex road and traffic
conditions associated with the Queens Bridge
and Flinders streets junction, and with:
··
overhead rail track supports;
··
offsetting traffic between Queens Bridge Street
and William Street away from the no-through
road of Market Street; and
··
the heritage significance of the Banana
Alley Vaults.
This part of the site is also likely to be required
for maintenance, recovery and emergency vehicle
access to rail infrastructure and is a potential
vehicle access point for any new development.
The objective is to improve the western end
of the site.
FLINDERS STREET STATION DESIGN COMPETITION
Statement of Key Objectives - February 2012
Elizabeth Street pedestrian crossing
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‘Coathanger’ pedestrian bridge (looking north)
Sandridge pedestrian bridge (looking north east)
West end of site (looking east)
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Flinders Street ‘clocks’
T ourism and events
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12.Restore and preserve
a landmark building
Flinders Street Station’s main entry at the corner
of Flinders and Swanston streets is one of the
quintessential images of Melbourne. This corner
element and the 240 metre heritage facade along
Flinders Street are intrinsic parts of Melbourne’s
history and identity. The objective for these
elements is that they be restored as close as
possible to their original intent and for them
to be preserved for the future.
13.Enhance the station
as a popular destination
Melbourne and Victoria compete with other
Australian destinations to attract visitors, major
events, conventions and other activities. The station
precinct has the potential to play a greater role in
tourism and events by providing new congregation
spaces supported by the provision of food,
beverages and entertainment and possibly
hotel accommodation. A great design will
also attract people.
Degraves Street (looking south)
FLINDERS STREET STATION DESIGN COMPETITION
Statement of Key Objectives - February 2012
FLINDERS STREET STATION DESIGN COMPETITION
Statement of Key Objectives - February 2012
Page 18 of 28 Ballroom interior
S tate asset
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14.Better utilisation of space
The space above and adjacent to the tracks
needs to be used to provide greater benefit to
the State. The total land area of the station site
is 46,800 square metres, with the footprint of
the Administration Building being 3,200 square
metres, the eastern concourse 5,300 square metres
and the platforms 11,200 square metres. Above
and adjacent to the tracks, some 27,100 square
metres, or about 60 per cent of the total land area,
is underutilised.
15.Improve usefulness of the
Administration Building
To protect it into the future, the Administration
Building must be made more useful and
economically valuable. The building has five levels
comprising basement, ground, first, second and
third floors. The current usable space varies on each
level, and while a significant portion is required for
circulation within the building, it could provide in
the order of 9,000 square metres of space for uses
consistent with heritage requirements.
Booking hall and ‘clocks’
FLINDERS STREET STATION DESIGN COMPETITION
Statement of Key Objectives - February 2012
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Ballroom entrance
Booking hall windows
Clock tower ceiling
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Milk dock and administration building (looking east)
E conomic viability
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16. Consider commercial elements
Consideration must be given to a commercial
component for any redevelopment so that cost
to the State is reduced. Accordingly, the State
is prepared to consider commercial elements,
particularly towards the western section of the site.
17.Balanced outcome for Victorians
To improve the transport function and restore
the station as a cultural heritage landmark, a
significant public investment may be required.
The State considers it important to find a balance
between reducing the burden on public funding
while maximising the benefits that are valued
by the majority of Victorians.
Milk dock (looking west)
FLINDERS STREET STATION DESIGN COMPETITION
Statement of Key Objectives - February 2012
Page 24 of 28 Clock tower
D esign q uality
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18.Distinctive design outcomes
The project seeks distinctive design outcomes
that will add to the rich collection of memorable
spaces and buildings of which Melbourne is justly
proud. Flinders Street Station is a critically important
landmark site on the edge of the city grid, on the
edge of the river, and opposite two key civic and
cultural sites—Federation Square and the Arts
precinct. To make the most of this important site,
the State is conducting a generously awarded
international architectural competition to attract
design propositions of excellence from the best
in the world.
Main dome (looking south)
FLINDERS STREET STATION DESIGN COMPETITION
Statement of Key Objectives - February 2012
SITE MAP
ST
TON
ANS
SW
SS
AVE
GR
DE
T
ZAB
ELI
ETH
ST
IO
RAT
IST
NG
LDI
IN
TPR
m2
FEDERATION
SQUARE
FOO
UI
MIN
AD
S
EEN
QU
PLATFORMS
11,200m2
EAST
CONCOURSE
5,300m2
T
SITE ‘A’
WEST CONCOURSE
7,900m2
ET
RK
MA
ST
PE
DE
S
TR
IA
N
BR
ID
G
E
E
DG
QUEENSBRIDGE ST
YARRA RIVER
YARRA RIVER
BRI
SITE ‘C’
BANANA ALLEY VAULTS
7,100m2
‘COAT H
A
PEDESTR NGER’
IAN BRID
GE
ES
NC
PRI
SITE ‘B’
MILK DOCK
12,100m2
T
SS
ER
ND
ST
,200
T3
NB
FLI
ERS
ND
FLI
DG
E
EXTENT OF KEY INTERFACES
SA
ND
RI
EXTENT OF STATION PRECINCT
INDI C ATIVE S C HEDULE
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Description
Objective
Administration Building
East Concourse
Platforms
Restore & Internal Refurb.
Re-configure & Improve
Restore & Improve
Site Area
3,200m2
5,300m2
11,200m2
Description
Objective
Site Area
Site ‘A’ (West Concourse)
New Development
7,900m2
Site ‘B’ (Milk Dock)
New Development 12,100m2
Site ‘C’ (Banana Alley Vaults) New Development
7,100m2
Total46,800m2
SCALE 1:3000
FLINDERS STREET STATION DESIGN COMPETITION
Statement of Key Objectives - February 2012
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Stairway to Platform 8 & 9
FLINDERS STREET STATION DESIGN COMPETITION
Statement of Key Objectives - February 2012
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Authorised by the Victorian Government, 121 Exhibition Street, Melbourne.
DOT6704/2012
For more information on the Flinders Street Station Design Competition please visit: www.mpv.vic.gov.au
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