The consultation took time.
The Aboriginal consultation process was reasonably lengthy, with several meetings required.
We worked with a specialist consultant to keep it running smoothly, and it ended with a good result.
Case study · Residential hotel · Carrum Downs
61 rooms, built to tread lightly on significant ground.
A residential hotel beside a gaming tavern, designed with the Indigenous Community so that disturbing the ground was kept to a minimum.
- Location
- Carrum Downs, VIC
- Sector
- Residential hotel
- Client
- Kolestar Pty Ltd
- Authority
- Frankston City Council
- Value band
- $5M–$10M
- Status
- Completed 2021
- Hotel rooms
- 61
- Hotel rooms
- Storeys, plus a minor basement approved
- 2
- Storeys, plus a minor basement approved
- Engagement to permit
- 12 mths
- Engagement to permit
- Request for further information
- 1
- Request for further information
01 — The project
Vacant land beside a gaming tavern.
- Client
- Kolestar Pty Ltd
- Brief
- A particular number of rooms, set by the operator
- Operator
- ALH Group
- Existing site
- Vacant land, with a gaming tavern next door on the same property
The operator wanted a particular number of rooms rather than the maximum the site could hold. It was a niche use, with a brief driven by the operator's preferred yield.
02 — The problem
A cultural significance overlay.
The site carried a Cultural Indigenous Significance Overlay. Building a hotel here meant working with the Indigenous Community and disturbing as little ground as possible.
- 01Site
Meeting the Bunurong Land Council
We met the Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation to table the proposed hotel design, discuss the process and obtain the necessary approvals.
- 02Survey
Searching for artefacts first
A specialist consultant carried out test pit and trench surveys to locate any artefacts.
- 03Structure
A footing that barely touches the ground
A suspended slab on steel beams and posts, with localised piers and screw piles, minimised excavation.
- 04Approvals
Supported by the Indigenous Community, monitored throughout
The Indigenous Community supported the strategy, and all necessary permits were received. Monitoring continued during ground works without any issue.
Who we worked with
- Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation
- Specialist consultant
- Frankston City Council
- ALH Group
03 — The first move
A solid link to the tavern.
The decision that set the direction: the hotel should have a solid interface with the gaming tavern next door.
Hotel guests were to dine in the tavern's bistro, so we placed the two buildings close together, with good sight lines between their entrances.
- HOTHotel entrance61 rooms
- ↔Close proximity, clear sight linesGuest route
- TAVGaming tavern entranceBistro dining
Hotel and tavern share the same property.
04 — The footing
Built above the ground, not into it.
To minimise excavation, we developed a footing design that kept most of the building off the ground. The Indigenous Community supported this strategy.
- L1Hotel rooms
- GHotel roomsCommunal areas
Ground floor suspended slab
- —Steel beams and posts
- —Localised piers and screw piles, where needed
05 — What we delivered
One practice, from first sketch to site.
De Nova led design, approvals and documentation directly, then administered the contract through construction.
Schematic design
Massing and the tavern link.
CompleteTown planning
Permit and overlay approvals.
CompleteBuilding documentation
Full documentation.
CompleteTender
Builder procurement.
CompleteContract administration
Through to completion.
Complete
Completed 2021
06 — Working with Council
One RFI. No mediation.
A minor number of objections, one request for further information, and no mediation or VCAT.
| Frankston City Council | |
|---|---|
| Objections | Minor |
| RFIs | 1Addressed |
Planning permit — Council12 months
The overlay was addressed through consultation, surveys and a footing design the Indigenous Community supported.
07 — Honest notes
What we'd tell you over coffee.
Nobody in our industry publishes this part. We think you should see it.
“Nothing.”
The process was long, but the Indigenous Community supported the footing strategy and the works went ahead without issue.
Project imagery
The proposal
Case study
Experience across diverse sectors
Case StudyDocumentation complete, ready for construction commencement
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- Keys/Rooms
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- Keys/Rooms
- Objections
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- Objections
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- Residential apartments
- 31
- Residential apartments
- Net lettable space
- 1,600m²
- Net lettable spaceRetail / Office
- Value Band
- $15M–$20M
- Value Band
A twin 6-storey mixed-use development in Heidelberg featuring 31 apartments and 1,600m² of retail/office space, unified across a public laneway by a pioneering double-storey suspended air-rights linkway approved by Banyule City Council.
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A unique vision with unlimited possibilities