Melbourne and Swiss architects Hassell, Herzog & De Meuron were announced this week as winners of the Flinders Street Station design competition.
Beating five other short listed designs and 118 competition entrants, the multinational team’s vision of a 21st century take on Victorian-era train sheds includes an amphitheatre by the Yarra River, a marketplace and an art gallery.
“We wanted to turn Flinders Street Station into a destination to be enjoyed, rather than a place to hurry through,” Hassell principal architect Mark Loughnan said.
Victoria’s Major Projects Minister David Hodgett said the competition was “all about what Flinders Street Station can look like and could be in the future”.
Premier Denis Napthine told reporters that the judging panel had been unanimous in their verdict which best reflected a future vision for the precinct.
“The jury praised the winning design for its respect for the heritage of the Administration Building, while creating new and memorable additions to the station, such as the vaulted train hall, the new gallery and riverside amphitheatre,” Dr Napthine said.
The winning architects will receive the competition first prize of $500,000. The Victorian premier said that the estimated design would cost between $1 billion to $1.5 billion to realise.
A team of architecture students from Melbourne University collected the people’s choice award for their design, which included a rooftop garden above the station’s tracks. Almost 19,000 votes were cast in the people’s choice awards which ran online.
The state government has not committed to completing the overhaul, and has two years to decide whether to proceed with the project. It has also ruled out selling the historic station to raise private finance.
Opposition treasury spokesman Tim Pallas is reported to have called the competition a waste of money.