By Tom Cowie
The building looks long abandoned. It’s covered in graffiti and the windows are broken, making it a magnet for vagrants and drug users.
But the six-storey structure at 375 Punt Road in Cremorne – walking distance from Melbourne’s world-famous sporting precinct – is barely six years old.
Cremorne residents say the building at 375 Punt Road is an eyesore and a haven for drug users.Credit: Justin McManus
Once, there were plans for the project to be apartments, and then a boutique hotel.
Now, residents can’t wait for it to be demolished to end a nightmare of anti-social behaviour.
Colette Hynes, who has lived nearby since 2019, said the problems started when, during the pandemic, construction was put on hold. It then stopped altogether.
In the past 12 months, it has devolved into a dilapidated blight on the streetscape.
“Not only is it an eyesore, but it’s just not good for the community,” Hynes said.
“We’ve called police on multiple occasions. We’ve had to contact outreach services because we’ve had people shooting up there. It’s full on.”
The original permit granted by Yarra City Council allowed the developer to build 10 dwellings on the site across six levels.
But before that development was finished, fresh plans were submitted in 2020 to convert the building into a boutique hotel with 61 rooms.
Residents (from left) Pauline Walton, Colette Hynes, Nicole Goding and Damon Hill are frustrated with the abandoned building.Credit: Justin McManus
That never eventuated, with the property then on-sold to another developer – Future Estate – in 2022. Since then, progress has stopped, with the building slated for demolition to rebuild another hotel and wellness centre.
Hynes said the owners had taken some measures to improve the building’s security, but it hadn’t stopped people from breaking in.
“We had rough sleepers moving in; however, they closed off an area that they were using,” she said.
“There are families in the area. We know that these things take time. I think we have been very patient, but the reality is the building is not secure.”
Another resident, Damon Hill, is more blunt.
“It’s a shit show,” he said. “It’s just sat there, literally derelict.”
Hill said the footpaths around the building were littered with syringes. The vandalism had also shifted to other properties in the area.
“They’ve got the spray cans with them, so why not?” he said. “The building has been destroyed, that is just absolutely done. It’s not going to be repurposed.”
‘They spend all the money on gentrifying all that on the other side of the road and everything else. Then you’ve got this turd across the street.’
Cremorne resident Damon Hill
Given its location in a high-traffic area close to the MCG, AAMI Park and Swan Street, Hill said it didn’t make sense to let the building continue to deteriorate.
“They spend all the money on gentrifying all that on the other side of the road and everything else,” he said. “Then you’ve got this turd across the street.”
Pauline Walton, another resident, said the building had become a talking point for visitors, and not in a good way.
“It’s a real eyesore, and everyone who comes by goes, ‘What’s going on there?’” she said.
“It looks awful. It just runs a suburb down, I think.”
A Yarra City Council spokesperson said a number of complaints about the building had been reported to police.
“We have also been working closely with the owner of the building to improve security at the site. Council officers also conduct regular inspections,” the spokesperson said.
Yarra councillor Herschel Landes said it was disappointing the building had to be knocked down so soon after construction.
“We’re concerned about the state of it, but I will be glad to see something get done,” he said.
The developer, Future Estate, was contacted for comment via email and phone but did not respond.
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