State Electricity Commission of Victoria building, later Lyle House, 22-32 William Street & 427 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
Butler, Graeme1985
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Total copies: 1
Title:
State Electricity Commission of Victoria building, later Lyle House, 22-32 William Street & 427 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
Creator:
Date of work:
1985
Reference number:
BIF-CITY 110151
Level of description:
Item from Collection: Heritage Collection (HC)
Type of materials:
Graphic materialsTextual material
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Series: Central City (BIF-CITY)
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UnrestrictedOpen access.
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UnrestrictedPlease contact City of Melbourne Libraries about obtaining permission to reproduce images.
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RESEARCH ADDED BY GRAEME BUTLER 2023:__________________________________________________DATE: 1921, 1949 (2 floors), 1989;ASSOCIATIONS: State Electricity Commission of Victoria;DESIGNER: La Gerche, AR (SEC Chief Architect);BUILDER: Hansen & YunckenPeriod: Inter-War_______________________________GRAEME BUTLER & ASSOCIATES 2011, CENTRAL CITY (HODDLE GRID) HERITAGE REVIEWStatement of SignificanceWhat is significant?In a policy speech in Castlemaine in June 1918, (later Sir) HSW Lawson announced his Government's intention to create a State power system. Two years later, the State Electricity Commission of Victoria was created by Act of Parliament with Sir John Monash as its chairman. The Commission immediately undertook the development of brown coal deposits near Morwell, the construction of the first of a series of steam-powered generators and the high voltage power lines required to bring electricity to the City. This was to serve Victoria's industrial expansion that had faltered in the past because of an erratic power supply capacity. The Commission continued in this quest until 1993 when it was dismantled into generation, transmission and distribution companies which were privatised in the late 1990s.It quickly became clear that suitable accommodation would be required for the Melbourne staff of the Electricity Commission and in November 1920 plans were prepared for an eight storey (with more to follow) office building to be erected at the corner of William Street and Flinders Lane. This was next to the Western Market, the Melbourne Customs House, and the Port Authority Building (occupied by the SEC 1983 to 1987): as part of a government and local government building group.The design was prepared by AR La Gerche, who was appointed architect to the Commission in November 1920 and served in that position until his retirement in August 1938. In addition to the William Street Headquarters, La Gerche designed the Yallourn Township and the later Electricity Commission buildings on Finders StreetThe William Street building provided the usual clerical, administrative and engineering areas required by a large utility but was unique in that it housed the central control room of the Commission's power production pool. Data relating to generation and regulation were fed to the control room by land and radio lines and staff on duty would continuously regulate voltage, carry out system switching procedures, locate and rectify faults throughout the generating facilities, transmission lines, stations and substations that comprised the power production pool.The building took the form of a large but simplified modern Commercial Palazzo form with restrained Greek revival detailing. Eminent architect and architectural historian, Robin Boyd described the completed building as being `remarkably simple’ in the seminal text, `Victoria Modern', as an indicator of the building's role in formulating the path of Modernism in the State. Key features of the Commercial Palazzo style found here include the vertical tripartite division of the façade into a heavy rusticated base and neutral intermediate floors surmounted by a prominent classical cornice. Each of the two principal facades was distinguished by a central metal-framed and clad window panel rising through the full height of the intermediate floors. Two additional matching floors were added to the building 1948-1949 but few other external changes have been undertaken and the building remains in good and largely original condition. Details like the heavy panelled bronze clad door to the south William Street entry are notable.How is it significant?State Electricity Commission of Victoria building is significant historically and aesthetically to the Melbourne Capital City ZoneWhy is it significant?The former State Electricity Commission of Victoria building aesthetically significant as an early and good example of Greek Revival details applied to a Commercial Palazzo form within Melbourne's Capital City Zone and historically one of a small number of 20th century multi-storey government offices erected in the pre World War Two era and hence a testimony to its long association with the expansion of the State Electricity Commission and development of the state power system.__________________________RAWORTH, B 2002. REVIEW OF HERITAGE OVERLAY LISTINGS IN THE CBDfor the City of MelbourneHistory and DescriptionIn a policy speech in Castlemaine in June 1918, (later Sir) HSW Lawson announced his Government's intention to create a state power system. Two years later, the State Electricity Commission of Victoria was created by Act of Parliament with Sir John Monash as its chairman. 1The Commission immediately undertook the development of brown coal deposits near Morwell, the construction of the first of a series of steam-powered generators and the high voltage power lines required bring electricity to the City. It quickly became clear that suitable accommodation would be required for the Melbourne staff of the Commission and in November 1920 plans were prepared for an eight storey buildingto be erected at the corner of William Street and Flinders Lane. 2 The design was prepared by AR LaGerche, who was appointed architect to the Commission in November 1920 and served in that position until his retirement in August 1938. In addition to the William Street Headquarters, La Gerche designed the Yallourn Township and the later Commission buildings on Finders Street.3The William Street building provided the usual clerical, administrative and engineering areas required by a large utility but was unique in that it housed the central control room of the Commission's power production pool. Data relating to generation and regulation were fed to the control room by land and radio lines and staff on duty would continuously regulate voltage, carry out system switching procedures, locate and rectify faults throughout the generating facilities, transmission lines, stations and substations that comprised the power production pool. 4As constructed, the building took the form of a large palazzo. Robin Boyd described the completed building as being ‘remarkably simple’. 5 Key features of the style found here include the vertical tripartite division of the facade into a heavy rusticated base and neutral intermediate floors surmounted by a prominent classical cornice. Each of the two principal facades was distinguished by a central metal window surround risingthrough the full height of the intermediate floors. By 1949, two additional floors had been added to the building6 but, with the exception of unsympathetic exterior painting, few other changes have been undertaken and the building remains in good and largely original condition.Statement of SignificanceThe former SEC Headquarters at 22-32 William Street is of aesthetic and historical significance at a local level as a good example of an intact interwar palazzo design within Melbourne's CBD and for its associations with the development of the state power system.Footnotes:1 State Electricity Commission of Victoria, Three Decades: The Story of the State Electricity Commission of Victoria from its inception to December 1948, p.6.2 Ibid, p.40.3 Ibid, p.46.4 Ibid, p174.5 Boyd, Victorian Modern, p. 226 Ibid, p.37.________________________GRAEME BUTLER 1985 MELBOURNE CENTRAL ACTIVITIES DISTRICT CONSERVATION STUDYBUILDING IDENTIFICATION FORM cites Keith and John Reid, CBD Study Area 7 Historic Buildings Preservation Council, 1976: page 29;_______________________________________MCC i-Heritage: Central Activities District Conservation Study - Graeme Butler, 1984 Building Identification Form (BIF): Notable features include - relates to Port Authority Building; first SEC headquarters. Other Comments CBD study recommends façade retention._______________________________________MCC i-Heritage: Central Activities District Conservation Study 2000 cites: State Electricity Commission of Victoria, Three Decades: The Story of the State Electricity Commission of Victoria from its inception to December 1948, pp.6, 40, 46, 174; Boyd, R, `Victorian Modern': 22, 37_______________________________________CITY OF MELBOURNE BUILDING PERMIT APPLICATIONSBuilding Permit Application 15 Aug. 1948, 24639,_______________________________________Mahlstedt fire insurance plans series:1924: block 18: shown south of Western Market, part of government, local government group, reinforced concrete beams, floors.1948-: block 18: shows as 10 storeys_______________________________________City of Melbourne mapsOrion House:Formerly the State Electricity Commission's Headquarters. Built on what is thought to be the site of John Pascoe Fawkner's first dwelling. A plaque commemorating this is to be found on the site.An eleven storey reinforced concrete office building with basement parking and ground level retail. Designed by the Commission's architect Alfred L La Gerche in the Commercial Palazzo style and built by Hansen & Yuncken in 1922 for a cost of 82,000 pounds. Originally a nine storey building the top two floors were added in 1949. When first opened the building housed the administrative and engineering staff of the SEC and, uniquely, contained the central control room of the power production pool. Other tenants included the Marine Board, Ports and Harbours Authority and the curator of intestate estates. In total 213 people occupied the building when first opened. As an incentive to fill the remaining vacant floor space the Commission offered potential tenants this space to be leased at 4/6 per square foot per annum as compared with the equivalent market price of 8/-.Refurbished and subdivided in 1989._______________________________________`Melbourne Cityscope' map 36, 18 - 12 floors, past HQ of SECV completed 1922, site of Fawkner's 1836 hotel and house._______________________________________Newspapers:`The Argus':Frid 23 Sep 1921`ELECTRIC POWER PLANTS.Views of Sir John Monash,Because the Ministry could not see its way clear to embark on the Kiewa power scheme, it did not mean that it was not eager to discover a less ambitious scheme, which would help development in its neighbourhood, and could be linked up with the Morwell project. Emphasis was laid on this fact by Sir John Monash, chairman of the State Electricity Commission, who addition- dressed delegates to the annual conference at the Waterworks Trusts Association atthe Stock Exchange on Wednesday on the possibilities of electrical development in Victoria.Anyone who charged him with being an agnostic to hydro-electric power, said Sir John Monash, did him a grave injustice. But the present state of the demand for electricity had to be considered by the commission. The community of Victoria was greatly under industrialised. In proportion to its population it was not consuming anything like the amount of power used by similar communities in other parts of the world. Trustworthy data showed that in America there was 3.1/2 horse-power behind every industrial worker. In this State he doubted if there was as much as half horse- power behind each worker. Electric sup- ply in Victoria hitherto had been precarious and erratic through insufficient installation of plant and industrial troubles, but relatively the total demand was small and the lode factor was low…'Friday 13 April 1923`Electricity Commission Social Club.An interesting event in connection with the rapidly developing State Electricity Commission took place on Monday night at Anzac House, where members of the staff and their friends held a card party, supper and dance. At the request of the chairman of the social committee (Mr. A. C. Newton), Mr. H. R. Harper, engineer-in-chief of the Commission, form- ally declared the club open. Mr. Harper pointed out the advantages of such welfare organisations in modern business, and how social intercourse rubbed off the depart- mental corners in such a large building as the. Electricity Commission's offices. The engineer-in-charge of briquetting (Mr. H. Herman) thanked the committee for its work, and wished the Social Club every success. There were more than 120 guests at the function, which is to be the fore- runner and in which the chairman (Sir John Monash) is taking a leading part.'_______________________________Museum of Victoria web site:http://museumvictoria.com.au/collections/themes/3519/state-electricity-commission-of-victoria-secv-collection`State Electricity Commission of Victoria (SECV) CollectionThe State Electricity Commission of Victoria (SECV) Collection contains glass plate and film negatives, photographic prints and photo albums, relating to the development of the electric power supply industry in Victoria, dating from the late 1880s to 1993. It includes images taken by the State Electricity Commission of Victoria and its various predecessors, both private and municipal power supply enterprises.The State Electricity Commission of Victoria (SECV) was established in 1921 to supply electricity to Victoria. This role continued until 1993 when it was disaggregated into generation, transmission and distribution companies, which were further split and privatised in the late 1990s.Prior to the establishment of SECV, electricity was generated and distributed by a number of private and municipal generator and distribution companies. These companies generally relied on a fuel supply provided by the black coal industry of New South Wales, which was strike-prone and unreliable. The images in the SECV collection range from the 1880s to 1993 and include construction works, staff, interiors and exteriors of power stations in Adelaide, Port Adelaide, Geelong and Melbourne, the illumination and electrification of Victoria, and electrical products.Key projects such as the development of the Yallourn Power Station, one of the first capital works to be carried out by the SECV, the Snowy Mountains Scheme, and the Rubicon Hydroelectric Scheme, are documented in this collection. The SECV also built and managed the company town of Yallourn for workers of the accompanying power station, and operated several railways and three provincial electric tramways, images of which are also included in the collection.'______________________________DIRECTORIES OF VICTORIA, MELBOURNE-SANDS AND KENNY, SANDS & MCDOUGALL1924 22-32 State Electricity Commission of Victoria offices ground to 4th floor, 5th-7th floors leased.1930 State Electricity Commission of Victoria offices1935 State Electricity Commission of Victoria offices(plus State Explosives Dept, caretaker Carlos)1939: State Electricity Commission of Victoria1974: State Electricity Commission of Victoria
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| Type | Reference No. | Extent | Status/Desc |
|---|---|---|---|
| Original | 110151 | 1 JPEG : 513 KB ; A4 | Single Item (May not be issued, may not be reproduced) |