Storm over ‘extreme vision’ for redevelopment of St Kilda yacht club

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Key points

• The Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron building on St Kilda’s foreshore was granted a provisional permit last year for a modern redevelopment.
• But development plans have been put on hold after a VCAT submission called for a review of the council’s decision to issue a permit to the yacht club.
• The club’s VCAT submission says the design plans were in line with other foreshore establishments like the St Kilda Surf Life Saving Club.

A modern redevelopment of St Kilda’s iconic yacht club building has been given the green light, but a group of locals – including a former deputy mayor – is fighting to scuttle it.

The Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron, which is subject to local and partial state government heritage protection, was last year granted a provisional permit for the upgrades by the City of Port Phillip and given the go-ahead from Heritage Victoria.

Artist’s impression of the proposed Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron building redevelopment.

Under the plan, the front of the landmark council-owned building – located on St Kilda’s foreshore and dating back to the 1920s – will retain its traditional features.

But part of the building’s south-facing side will be demolished to make way for a two-storey extension and there will be a new brick facade extension of the members’ dining room as part of the design by Muir Architecture.

The third storey roof deck will also be increased to allow for a rooftop bar with a space for functions and there will be a new cafe and outdoor dining area.

However, it’s not all plain sailing. Architect and former City of Port Phillip deputy mayor David Brand has lodged an application with the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) to review the council’s decision to issue a permit.

Under the plan, the front of the landmark building will retain its traditional features.Credit: Joe Armao

Brand is opposed to the changes and described them as a “potential planning tragedy on the St Kilda Foreshore” in his VCAT submission.

He said the changes would strip the building’s nautical character and is most concerned about the rooftop function area and the dining room addition at the southern end facing Jacka Boulevard.

“The two new additions proposed are severely unsympathetic to the architecture and character of the [yacht club] building – and to the character and aspirations of the club itself,” Brand, who is also the head of Community Alliance of Port Phillip, said in his VCAT submission.

“The whole building can be seen as a self-contained vessel, ‘floating’ in its Catani Gardens ‘sea’.”

Serge Thomann (front with dog) and other St Kilda locals oppose the “extreme” redevelopment of the yacht club. Credit: Joe Armao

Brand described it as “an astonishingly inappropriate design for the proposed redevelopment of our familiar foreshore institution”.

His VCAT matter is being supported by other community advocates, including Serge Thomann and Peter Holland, the president and vice president of resident’s group Unchain, which has been at the vanguard of St Kilda Triangle wars.

Catriona Sinclair, a St Kilda resident of 16 years, attended a VCAT hearing into the matter on Wednesday.

She said she wasn’t against updating the building, but feared the heritage value was not being maintained by the proposal.

“The visual impact of the proposed development is something that will obliterate the full appreciation of the existing nautical history,” Sinclair said.

“A box-like structure in the southern side and another large box on top makes the whole building lose its feel for what it was originally intended.

“It’s such an extreme vision.”

Sinclair said the building – a popular wedding photo backdrop – would lose all of its romance and become “another commercial distraction”.

The plan includes several extensions and a rooftop bar with a space for functions, a cafe and an outdoor dining area.

In its submission, prepared by developers Hansen Partnership, the Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron said that the contemporary design plan by Muir complemented “the quality, built form, and character of other publicly accessible developments within the St Kilda foreshore precinct including Stokehouse and St Kilda Surf Live Saving Club”.

The yacht club, which has a membership of almost 1000, has a lease on the building until February 28, 2035. It said the facility needed to be updated for it to remain financially viable.

“The proposed enhancements to the [club] building will bring modern operational benefits to a heritage building within a vibrant, foreshore precinct that enjoys significant public visitations throughout the year,” the Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron said in its VCAT submission.

VCAT hearings will resume in December.

The building is protected by the City of Port Phillip with a heritage overlay. The council declined to comment.

Heritage Victoria said it had issued a permit for works relating to the Catani Gardens, which is on the Victorian Heritage Register and where the club is located. The building is not on the register and the permit was issued on the basis that redevelopments would not adversely affect the Catani Gardens.

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