Council backs St Nicholas Church redevelopment in East Melbourne

The City of Melbourne has approved a long-running planning application for St Nicholas Antiochian Orthodox Church in East Melbourne, giving the green light to a heritage-sensitive redevelopment.

The $4.3 million project, considered by councillors at the Future Melbourne Committee on May 5, combines new accommodation, a replacement church hall and restoration works at one of Victoria Parade’s most prominent religious sites.

Councillors unanimously approved the proposal for 528-536, 538 and 540 Victoria Parade, on the corner of Simpson St. The project includes partial demolition at the rear of the existing church, removal of the current church hall, demolition of a single-storey building at 528 Victoria Parade, partial demolition to the rear of the dwellings at 538 and 540 Victoria Parade, and construction of a new multi-storey infill development.

The approved works will deliver a priest’s residence, 13 dwellings, a replacement church hall and a basement car park with 19 spaces. Council planning documents also show 14 bicycle spaces and almost 729 sqm of landscaped open space, representing around 37.7 per cent of the site area.

Addressing councillors on behalf of the applicant, Ratio consultant Lewis Moore said the church had been part of the East Melbourne community for almost 100 years and stressed that the proposal had been carefully designed to respect that history.

He described the new residential component as “a complementary element in the streetscape” designed in a “sympathetic and interpretive manner” and said the landscaping had been an integral part of the project.

A key issue during the meeting was heritage. Lord Mayor Nick Reece sought confirmation on the record that the part of the church proposed for demolition was not part of the original heritage fabric.

Mr Moore confirmed that it was a later addition that had been altered multiple times and was also structurally unsound. He said the proposed works would allow the original part of the church to be restored “to its former glory” and continue serving the community into the future.

The current view of the site from Simpson St.

Deputy Lord Mayor and the council’s planning chair Roshena Campbell said the proposal represented an appropriate response to the site’s significance and surrounding context.

She said the demolition was confined to “non original, previously altered fabric at the rear of the site” and that the retention of the principal church building, together with the proposed reconstruction and restoration works, would help secure its long-term conservation.

She also noted that objections had raised concerns about visual bulk, overshadowing, overlooking and neighbourhood character, but said these issues were adequately addressed through the officer-recommended conditions.

One of those conditions is a section 173 agreement to ensure the accommodation remains tied to church-related use, including clergy, parishioners and students, rather than becoming separate private dwellings. Cr Campbell said that was an important safeguard given the nature of the approval.

Seconding the motion, Cr Reece said East Melbourne was one of Melbourne’s most scrutinised heritage suburbs and that any proposal there had to clear a high bar. He said the St Nicholas application did so.

“This development proposal is a very sensitive one, respectful of the original heritage church,” he said.

“As part of this development will see improvements to the church to bring it back to its former glory, while also the new building will become an important one that can only add to the East Melbourne community and does so in a very sensitive way.”