FLAT

LAND

A reference survey of Melbourne’s Commission Flats

A note on this document.

This was originally intended to be an exhaustive study. Unfortunately, time constraints put a limit on the scope of the work. Although it may not look it, the contents of this slim volume amounts to nearly month of full-time drawing, scouring archives, and modelling pre-fab flats. The information is as accurate as possible – I intend to im-prove upon it, offering proper schematics of each tower, and details of panel fixings, as well as current demographic studies of each estate and their status regarding refurbishment as demolition.

In its current format then, this booklet is rather neutered. Information used in its con-struction has been attached on CD, and may proved useful to other students.

Due to reasons of brevity and structural mystery, the four extant steel framed towers – the sixteen storey tower in Dorcas Street, the twenty storey in North Melbourne and the twinned, sixteen storey red-brick towers in Carlton – have been omitted. They are interesting exceptions to the overwhelming trend toward systematised design in Mel-bourne’s Housing Commission, and merit further investigation.

The primary purpose of this volume is to impress upon the reader the sheer massivity of these structures, their prevalence in the metropolitan area, and their typological and often ingenious diversity. It is hoped that this might inspire students to choose a site other than Carlton or Atherton gardens – or, better still, a holistic approach to these great grey sentinels of Melbourne.

Flemington(Crown St)

Footscray(Gordon St)

Debney’s Park

North Melbourne A

North Melbourne B

Kensington(Holland Park)

Williamstown A

Williamstown B

Tower EstatesLocation of all HCV estates with extant towers over 8 stories.

Brunswick (Barkly Street)

Northcote (Heidelburg Road)

Carlton Estate A

Carlton Estate B

Atherton GardensCollingwood Estate

Richmond Estate

Prahran A

Prahran B

Prahran C

St Kilda (Inkerman St)

Dorcas Estate

Park Towers

Name:Levels:Height:

Locations:

‘L’ Tower12 Stories35m to roof

Kensington x 1

Name:Levels:Height:

Locations:

Indented ‘S’ Tower20 Stories56m to roof

Atherton Gardens x 4Collingwood x 1

Name:Levels:Height:

Locations:

Park Street Tower30 Stories82m to roof

Park Street x 1

Name:Levels:Height:

Locations:

‘S’ Tower A20 Stories56m to roof

Carlton x 2Debney’s Park x 1North Melbourne x 1

Name:Levels:Height:

Locations:

‘S’ Tower B20 Stories56m to roof

Debney’s Park x 3Collingwood x 2

Name:Levels:Height:

Locations:

‘S’ Tower C12 Stories35m to roof

Prahran x 1

Name:Levels:Height:

Locations:

‘S’ Tower D20 Stories56m to roof

Richmond x 5

Name:Levels:Height:

Locations:

‘I’ Tower A12 Stories35m to roof

Williamstown x 1Flemington (Crown Street) x 1

Name:Levels:Height:

Locations:

‘I’ Tower B12 Stories35m to roof

Kensington x 1

Name:Levels:Height:

Locations:

‘T’ Tower A12 Stories35m to roof

Inkerman Street x 1Carlton x 1Footscray x 1

Name:Levels:Height:

Locations:

‘T’ Tower B12 Stories35m to roof

Prahran x 2

Name:Levels:Height:

Locations:

‘Z’ Tower12 Stories35m to roof

Prahran x 1Northcote x 1Brunswick x 1

Name:Levels:Height:

Locations:

Tri-Tower12 Stories35m to roof

North Melbourne x 1Carlton x 1Prahran x 2

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Footscray

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Northcote

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Atherton Gardens

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Brunswick

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Richmond

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Richmond (cont)

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Collingwood

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Carlton A

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Carlton B

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Flemington

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Park Towers

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Dorcas St

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Williamstown A

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Williamstown B

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Kensington

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Prahran A

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Prahran B

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

Prahran C

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

North Melbourne B

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

North Melbourne A

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000

10 20 30 40 50 75 1000

1:2000