Greenaway Architects is engaged to produce an urban and landscape design response to the ground floor laneway, which is anchored to Country and incorporate feedbacks and local knowledge from Traditional Owners.

This new internal laneway will connect Flinders Street and Flinders Lane, adding another vibrant thoroughfare to Melbourne’s bustling streetscape.

The design is grounded in place and responds to the Country (land, sky and water) upon which the site is built. To this end, local quarried stones are used for pavers, planters as ‘islands in the rivers’ are positioned throughout the laneway and each with a unique Indigenous plant palette, and place names are engraved onto the ground plane.

The proximity of the site to the Birrarung (River of Mists) and its significance to local Traditional Owners is highlighted in the design, through the ‘Birrarung Line’, a meandering bronze strip embedded onto the ground plane and guides visitors from the site’s Flinders Street frontage through to the opening on Flinders Lane.

Construction is underway, with completion expected by 2024. The development will comprise two towers—a medium-rise North tower spanning 15 levels and a towering South tower reaching 39 levels. These towers will rise from a six-level podium, integrating approximately 900 square meters of retail space. Strategically located within walking distance of key transport hubs including Flinders Street Station and Parliament Station, 51 Flinders Lane will offer unparalleled views of Birrarung Marr, the Yarra River, and the MCG.