Kinnears and Victoria Square add to Footscray's construction upswing

Kinnears and Victoria Square add to Footscray's construction upswing
Mark BaljakMarch 11, 2018

Standing dormant for years, Kinnears Footscray has finally begun its transformation into a mixed-use precinct.

Builder LU Simon has initiated works on Stage One of the project, which will be known as L.I.V.E. City. Beating out other contractors such as Hutchinson and Hamilton Marino, LU Simon is tasked with delivering 208 apartments across 14 levels at the western most section of the massive 33,393 square metre site which is addressed 124-188 Ballarat Road.

Demolition works are in progress elsewhere across the site, gradually removing the structure that formerly housed the rope manufacturer. Architecture firm Elenberg Fraser are working on the master-planned precinct for developer R&F Property Australia. 

Although a display suite onsite is ready, no public release of apartments has taken place as yet.

Kinnears and Victoria Square add to Footscray's construction upswing
Works across the Kinnears site with an early masterplanned image for the site

Meanwhile works across Growland's Victoria Square site have begun following a January approval to amended plans for the development.

Six buildings consisting of 900 plus apartments, offices and extensive retail space can proceed. The $600 million project now has excavators onsite preparing for a construction start.

Amendments to the Kavellaris Urban Design scheme included bumping apartment numbers up to 931, increasing commercial floor space to 6,012 square metres and boosting parking spaces within the development to 1075. Building heights were also marginally increased, with the tallest to stand at 25 storeys.

Stage One of Victoria Square includes the delivery of 161 single bedroom, 265 dual bedroom and 28 triple bedroom apartments across two towers.

Kinnears and Victoria Square add to Footscray's construction upswing
The amended and approved Victoria Square. Image: KUD

With earthworks in progress, construction proper on Stage One of Victoria Square is slated to begin mid this year, with a completion target of 2020.

Either side of Victoria Square, construction is also in motion for two fellow Joseph Road Precinct projects. Blue Earth Group have initiated construction across 2 Hopkins Street, whilst Stage One of Riverina Footscray has recently topped out.

It will temporarily hold the title as Footscray's tallest residential tower until Victoria Square's first stage is completed. Future stages of Riverina will see two 31 level apartment towers also delivered.

Kinnears and Victoria Square add to Footscray's construction upswing
Riverina Footscray construction progress

Mark Baljak

Mark Baljak was a co-founder of Urban.com.au. He passed away on Thursday 8th of November 2018 after a battle with cancer. He was 37. Mark was a keen traveller, having visited all six permanently-inhabited continents and had a love of craft beer. One of his biggest passions was observing the change that has occurred in Melbourne over the past two decades. In that time he built an enormous library of photos, all taken by him, which tracked the progress of construction on building sites from across metropolitan Melbourne.

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