Thank you to those who provided feedback on the draft revitalisation plan during the consultation period from 12 December 2024 - 23 February 2025.

The City Renewal Authority has considered written submissions received during the consultation period and updated the Revitalisation Plan where relevant.

A listening report from the consultation has been published which confirms general support for the legislation. The final version of the plan has been published on the ACT Legislation Register and the legislation is in effect.

The Sydney and Melbourne Buildings Draft Revitalisation Plan – Façade Painting (PDF) has been incorporated in the City Renewal Authority and Suburban Land Agency Act. As part of that process, we sought submissions about the plan from interested parties such as building owners, relevant government entities and the community. The consultation notice for this process was a notifiable instrument.

The Sydney and Melbourne Buildings are an iconic fixture along the City Centre’s main corridor.

Designed in the 1920s, they have been home to a wide variety of businesses and personalities. These buildings have a unique ownership structure in that they are privately owned by many owners, each responsible for their own property, including their own section of the façade and walkway.

The ACT Government recognises the importance of these heritage-listed buildings and is working with the building’s many owners to repaint the building façades.

All building owners have been invited to participate in the Façade Repainting Grant Program which supports owners to undertake the painting works in line with the Conservation Management Plan. Building owners will be provided the funds to paint their privately owned area of the façade, in accordance with the Revitalisation Plan, within 18 months. All building owners have confirmed their participation in the grant program, and many owners have their façade repainting completed or underway.

Should building owners not agree to the grant program, they may be directed to repaint their building's façade at their own expense in accordance with the City Renewal Authority and Land Agency Act 2017.

Over the last 5 years, the City Renewal Authority has engaged with stakeholders (owners, businesses, and the broader community) regarding the revitalisation of the buildings. In 2019, the Authority conducted a community engagement process with targeted stakeholders about the potential for legislation to maintain the buildings (view the engagement report).

As a result, the City Renewal Authority’s Draft Revitalisation Plan encompasses the repainting of the façade of the Sydney and Melbourne Building by the building owners, ensuring they have a consistent, high-quality appearance that highlights the era of the buildings and meets community expectations.

The disallowable instrument enables City Renewal to carry out and charge for painting works if owners do not do it themselves, with a 6-month notice period.

Discuss the plan

We welcomed you to call or email us via the details on this page to discuss the plan before providing a formal submission with your feedback. We also sent a letter to every property owner during the consultation period.

Public meetings about the plan

We hosted an online drop-in session to discuss your queries.

• Online drop-in session: Tuesday, 4 February 2025, 4:30-5:30pm.

Written feedback

City Renewal will consider any written submissions received during the consultation period and make any revisions to the draft plan that the Authority considers appropriate. We will then prepare a final version of the draft plan.

The Sydney and Melbourne Buildings are privately owned and comprise of four individual buildings with approximately 100 separate land titles, multiple owners, and no common management body.

As a result of this large and diverse ownership structure, there are significant challenges in achieving a uniform approach to the maintenance and appearance of the buildings.

The ownership structure combined with informal and uncoordinated building refurbishment has been recognised as the main cause of the deteriorating condition of the buildings and their inconsistent appearance.

This final, formal round of consultation asked property owners and heritage stakeholders for any last comments or unforeseen issues with the Draft Revitalisation Plan.