Melbourne heritage building bought for a record $25 million by mystery developer

One of Melbourne city centre’s most beautiful – and most troubled – heritage buildings has been bought for a record $25 million by a mystery Singapore developer.

It’s the third time the Equity Chambers building has sold in five years, with previous plans to turn it into apartments – with retail and commercial space – defeated by the complexities of various heritage listings.

Two of those developers actually sold some of the projected apartments off the plan, before withdrawing and returning buyers’ deposits.

Now it’s expected that yet another sales campaign will be launched before the end of the year for the planned 158 apartments, over 18 levels, in the hope that either the old buyers will be game enough to try again, or new hopefuls will come forward.

“I’m not sure any of the originals will come back to it after so much disappointment,” said Clinton Baxter, Savills Melbourne state director of Victoria CBD and metropolitan sales. “But it’s such a beautiful building, I imagine there’ll be plenty more who’ll want to buy.”

The current five-level building at 472 Bourke Street – the former site of the first synagogue in the state – dates back to 1931. It had been the longest continuously occupied barristers’ chambers in Australia. Its tenants once included legal profession elder statesman Sir Eugene “Pat” Gorman.

Melbourne City Council granted developer Williamson Properties planning approval in 2008 to build 215 apartments on the site. That company onsold the premises in 2012 for $12.7 million to Malaysian developer DKLS. In 2013, Chinese developer ZYTT bought the building for $15 million.

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The current buyer is a large Singaporean group, with a long track record of successful developments, which has demanded the sales contract be cloaked in confidentiality. A City of Melbourne spokesman said the original planning permit is still valid.

“Hopefully this will be the last developer to own the building,” said Baxter. “The issues that confronted the other developers was all the various heritage listings, including archaeological, that have made it a very complex site.

“They’ve made it very difficult to excavate and then add levels to the foundations. There’s heritage listing also on the facade and all along the laneway to one side, which is an additional complication. I think when some people got into it, they didn’t realise how expensive it could be to develop the building.

“Only time will tell if this one will be successful.”

The current architecture firm for the site, which has since split into two different companies, is Studio 505. While both are still attached to the project, neither would comment. 

Under the current plan, most of the apartments will be contained within a tower erected behind the main building.

Heritage Victoria attained the heritage listing of large parts of the building and a spokesman from the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, said that if significant places are to have a future they need to be used and cared for.

“Alterations are often required to keep pace with modern life but must respect the importance of the place,” the spokesman said. “[Equity Chambers] is significant as an outstanding example of the exotic revival architectural styles, which were adopted in Victoria during the inter-war period, especially during the Great Depression. It is also historically important as the oldest continuously occupied barristers’ chambers in Victoria, which have been occupied since 1931 by some of Victoria’s most famous judges and barristers.”

TV and movie crews also film regularly inside the building, making use of the authentic 1930s interiors.