City of Melbourne creates peak design bodies
The City of Melbourne will establish two peak bodies to provide design advise on major developments, with 40 leaders from the design sector already appointed.
Councillors endorsed the new Design Excellence Advisory Committee and Melbourne Design Review Panel at the council’s Future Melbourne Committee meeting
Appointees include Infrastructure Australia CEO Romily Madew AO, renowned architect Vanessa Bird, architecture expert Shelley Penn AM and technical expert Karl Fender OAM.
Deputy Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece said the new bodies will help shape Melbourne’s streets, buildings and skyline for decades to come.
“This is going to be a game changer for Melbourne in terms of cementing our place as a world leading design city,” Reece said.
“We want to see streets and squares as beautiful as Amsterdam, a skyline that is as classy as Chicago and a design culture that is as hardcore as Copenhagen – all done in a Melbourne way.
“We’ve brought together some of the best and brightest in their fields to help us set the standards and transform Melbourne.”
The Design Excellence Advisory Committee will advise Council on design advocacy and culture, with a focus on opportunities to re-assert Melbourne’s global reputation as a leading design city.
The Melbourne Design Review Panel will complement Council’s internal design review processes by providing independent advice on significant private developments and City of Melbourne projects.
Reece said the new bodies are an opportunity for Melbourne’s world-class design and industry experts to work together to improve the city.