Photography by Peter Glenane courtesy of Broadsheet

The Victorian Government has released the key objectives in the criteria for the design competition for Flinders Street Station.

The requirements have been outlined and released by the Victorian Government in a Statement of Key Objectives document.

Minister for Major Projects Denis Napthine said that the competition is a way of attracting the ‘best and brightest’ from around the world to come up with new ideas for the historic landmark.

“Already we aware of a number of individuals and architectural firms that are following this competition with keen interest and this document will help those thinking of submitting an entry to begin preparing their design ideas,” Dr Napthine said.

She went on to say that due to the age of the building, challenges have arisen that the competition entrants will need to address.

These are:

  • The expected doubling of transport patronage in the next decade and the need to accommodate the new underground metro rail line planned for central Melbourne
  • The poor integration with surrounding precincts such as Federation Square and the south bank of the Yarra River
  • The urgent need to restore areas of this heritage-listed building including the grand ballroom to make this more accessible to the public
  • The under-utilisation of the western end of the site and potential for new buildings and spaces.

“The Coalition Government is looking for the world’s best ideas to upgrade, restore and re-invigorate the Flinders Street Station precinct in order to resolve these issues,” Dr Napthine said.

The competition will call for initial entries mid-2012 with short-listed detailed proposals to be submitted in 2013. The competition will have a prize pool of $1M.