Old Age Building: 250 Spencer Street, Melbourne (demolished 2014)
Old Age Building: 250 Spencer Street, Melbourne
The Old Age building on Spencer Street was purpose built for and occupied by The Age for over 40 years and is a redevelopment site. The building has gained notoriety for its uncompromising architecture and has been dubbed an eyesore by many. It has also earned the nickname (with political undertones) “Spencer Street Soviet” by Jeff Kennett former Premier of Victoria.1
The brown brick four storey building, with its long Corbusian aluminium windows occupies almost an entire city block of 15,200 square metres.
The Age newspaper (a Melbourne broadsheet founded 1854) moved from Collins Street to the new headquarters in 1969. In 2007 the building (or site) was sold for $66.1 million to Axiom Properties Limited and Industry Superannuation Property Trust2 earmarking the site for mixed use (residential development). Another headquarters on the corner of Collins and Spencer Street was completed for The Age to move into.
References
- Strong, Geoff. Life in the bunker cedes to comfort. Let’s hope that’s good news. December 14, 2009 ↩
- Axion Properties Limited press release Axiom & ISPT Snap up The Age site for $66.1M 22 February 2007 ↩
Posted in City of Melbourne, Low-rise (1-5 storeys), Melbourne 3000 | 
Tags: 1960s, 1969, 20th century, 4 storey, axiom properties limited, brutalism, corbusian windows, industry superannuation property trust, international stlye, lonsdale street melbourne, modern, office building, spencer street melbourne, the age
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