Lovett Tower
| Lovett Tower | |
|---|---|
|
Lovett Tower | |
| Former names | MLC Tower |
| Etymology | Lovett Family |
| General information | |
| Status | Complete |
| Type | Office |
| Architectural style | Modern |
| Location | Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia |
| Address | 13 Keltie Street |
| Coordinates | 35°20′43″S 149°05′05″E / 35.34528°S 149.08472°ECoordinates: 35°20′43″S 149°05′05″E / 35.34528°S 149.08472°E |
| Current tenants | Department of Veterans' Affairs, the Department of the Environment and the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet |
| Construction started | 1971-72 |
| Completed | 1973 |
| Opening | 1974 |
| Owner | The Cromwell Group |
| Height | |
| Architectural | 93 m (305 ft) |
| Tip | 93 m (305 ft) |
| Roof | 82 m (269 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 26 |
| Design and construction | |
| Main contractor | Civil & Civic |
The Lovett Tower (formerly known as the MLC Building) is a 93-metre (305 feet) tall tower in Canberra, the capital city of Australia. It is in Woden Town Centre, a commercial district of Canberra located in the suburb of Phillip.
History
Its construction was completed in 1973 by Civil & Civic,[1] and it is still the tallest office building in Canberra.
The Lovett Tower is a landmark commercial office, refurbished in 1999 and in 2007,[1] and can be seen towering over the city far away from Canberra. Because of the strict building restrictions in Canberra, there are few buildings in Canberra with 20 or more storeys, the others being Sky Tower and Capital Tower, both of which are residential buildings. It was formerly known as the MLC Tower but was renamed in 2000 by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission to honour the Lovett family.[2][3]
Features
The Lovett Tower is the 3rd tallest structure in Canberra (behind Black Mountain Tower and the flagpole of Parliament House) but is the tallest building because it has the most storeys - 26 storeys high including a basement level (though it is merely the 258th tallest building in Australia), and it also has the height of 93 metres (305 ft).
The Tower is currently occupied by the Department of Veterans' Affairs, the Department of the Environment and the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.[4] However, the tower faces problems, as the building faces vacancy by 2016,[4] as well as the departments occupying the building are cutting jobs in the hundreds.[5] As such there is no public access to the building. On the ground floor however, are shopfronts, housing a credit union (on the eastern side) and a coffee shop (on the western side). there is restricted access to the 13th floor, including no 13th floor button in most of the lifts, as the floor houses the building plant. The tower has been considered to be reinvented as an aged-care facility, after the departments currently occupying the tower move elsewhere.[6]
Accommodation of the building consists of a single level basement, ground floor foyer, two ground floor tenancies, while the rest of the building mainly consists of office space.[1] A mezzanine level is also found in the building.[1] Upper levels of the building features a central service core which accommodates female and male amenities, tea rooms, and multiple lifts and lift lobbies.[1] The Woden Town Centre is notorious for the wind tunnel caused by the Lovett Tower.[7]
Gallery
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Viewed from the north
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Northern face of the tower
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Upper floors of the tower
See also
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Property - Lovett Tower". The Cromwell Group. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
- ↑ "A fighting spirit". The Age. 24 April 2006. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
- ↑ "Aboriginal Armed Forces Service". Government of New South Wales. 2000. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
- 1 2 Towell, Noel; Clisby, Meredith; Page, Fleta (5 March 2014). "Welcome to Woden: tallest tower to empty as public service job cuts hit hub hard". The Canberra Times (Fairfax Media). Archived from the original on 5 March 2014.
- ↑ Peake, Ross (22 August 2014). "The future of Woden's town centre: will it be heaven or hell?". Canberra Times. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
- ↑ Towell, Noel (21 July 2014). "Canberra's tallest building may be reinvented as aged-care facility". Canberra Times. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
- ↑ "Borrowdale House Redevelopment Threatens Woden Town Square" (PDF). Woden Valley Community Council. 1 February 2011. Retrieved 12 September 2014.