ClarkeHopkinsClarke is undertaking a $500m transformation of a former mental asylum in Bundoora to create the Polaris 3083 residential and retail hub.
October 26th, 2015
Currently under construction in the north Melbourne suburb of Bundoora, the Polaris 3083 is a vibrant community set to revitalise the former Larundel Psychiatric Hospital. Famously uninhabited since closing in the late 1990s, the site has been a stomping ground for trespassing urban explorers, and is now getting an overdue facelift.
“This historic site bounding La Trobe University and abundant parkland has a unique sense of character that will be reimagined in an exciting new context and richly woven into a contemporary urban fabric,” says Robert Goodliffe, Partner at ClarkeHopkinsClarke.
Designed with the goal of preserving the heritage of the site, Polaris 3083 will retain five of the hospital’s original red brick buildings. Four of these are being repurposed as apartments, with the remaining building readapted as a community centre.
The presence of these former Larundel Hospital buildings drove the ClarkeHopkinsClarke architects project masterplan, which recognises the need for functionality and liveability, yet preserves and celebrates the existing architecture.
“Preserving the heritage buildings and existing trees has been important for lending a sense of an established neighbourhood to what is essentially a brand new development,” Goodliffe says.
While stage one of the Polaris project, The Village Centre’, was opened in 2014, further expansion to complete the village centre is currently underway. The Village Centre is presently composed of 64 one, two and three bedroom apartments, which are located over cafes, restaurants and retail outlets on the ground floor. A full line Woolworths supermarket and Dan Murphys store complete the current retail offering.
By retaining the historical significance of the Larundel site and encouraging a more inclusive and collaborative community, Polaris is set to become a leader in forward thinking community design and sustainability.
Polaris 3083
polaris3083.com.au
ClarkeHopkinsClarke
chc.com.au
INDESIGN is on instagram
Follow @indesignlive
A searchable and comprehensive guide for specifying leading products and their suppliers
Keep up to date with the latest and greatest from our industry BFF's!
BLANCOCULINA-S II Sensor promotes water efficiency and reduces waste, representing a leap forward in faucet technology.
To honour Chef James Won’s appointment as Gaggenau’s first Malaysian Culinary Partner, we asked the gastronomic luminaire about parallels between Gaggenau’s ethos and his own practice, his multidimensional vision of Modern Malaysian – and how his early experiences of KFC’s accessible, bold flavours influenced his concept of fine dining.
Gaggenau’s understated appliance fuses a carefully calibrated aesthetic of deliberate subtraction with an intuitive dynamism of culinary fluidity, unveiling a delightfully unrestricted spectrum of high-performing creativity.
Ban Ban’s interior by Genesin Studio is a low-tech K Pop minimalism treat for the eyes in the heart of Adelaide’s CBD.
The evolution of one of Sydney’s famed grocery stores into a global phenomenon has seen diversification that reaches across their store design as well as services. Owen Lynch inspects the menu.
The internet never sleeps! Here's the stuff you might have missed
Mandi Keighran explores the streets of London’s Clerkenwell district to uncover the standout installations, product launches and moments from Clerkenwell Design Week 2025.
The Finding Infinity Principal comments here on the question of balance in city life, with architecture and design highlighted as the key levers for making change.