page_title: Hotel Windsor (Melbourne)
section_title: 2008-2019 redevelopment proposals
hierarchical_section_title: Hotel Windsor (Melbourne) / History / 2008-2019 redevelopment proposals
caption_attribution_description: English: Windsor Hotel at dusk, Melbourne
context_page_description: The Hotel Windsor is a luxury hotel in Melbourne. The Windsor is notable for being Australia's only surviving grand 19th century city hotel and only official "grand" Victorian era hotel. The Hotel Windsor has a 5-star rating and is considered one of the grandest hotels in Melbourne.
  The Windsor is situated on Bourke Hill in the Parliament Precinct on Spring Street, and is a Melbourne landmark of high Victorian architecture. For much of its 20th century life the hotel, dubbed the Duchess of Spring Street, was one of the most favoured and luxurious hotels in Melbourne. It has hosted many notable national and international guests.
context_section_description: The Halim group first proposed to redevelop the Windsor in 2008 shortly after acquiring remaining shares from the Oriental Pacific Group and rebranding as "Hotel Windsor", with a $45 million redevelopment which proposed to modernise many of the interiors although they would not disclose whether the hotel was running at a loss or making a profit. The plan was approved by Heritage Victoria and the government after significant negotiations with the owners which included reducing the heritage impacts of the proposal. However development did not commence due to the Financial crisis of 2007–2010.
  In July 2009, the Halim group proposed a new $260 million refurbishment project which would add 152 rooms to the hotel. This would involve demolition of the hotel's 1960s-era north wing, and replacing it with a contemporary building with facilities expected by guests staying in a five star hotel. A thin curtain wall tower designed by Denton Corker Marshall was proposed be built replacing the 1880s rear wing, on Windsor Place. The architects proposed that the fritted wavy glass of the facade was a solution to minimise the visual impact of the tower. The application submitted to Heritage Victoria included restoration of the 1880s facade facing Spring and Little Collins Streets.
  The National Trust of Australia (Victoria), opposed to the development, concerned that the proposed tower would dominate the front heritage wing of the hotel, and would breach established height controls for the Bourke Hill precinct initially put in place to protect vistas towards Parliament House and low-rise nature of the area.
  In late February 2010, a news leak occurred which erupted in a government scandal surrounding the redevelopment of the Windsor Hotel. A document prepared by a senior media advisor to Planning Minister Justin Madden was sent by email to the ABC Newsdesk. It detailed plans by the Victorian Government to run a sham community consultation process in a bid to reject the plans.
  On 18 March 2010, the hotel refurbishment and redevelopment plans including the tower were approved by then Planning Minister, Justin Madden. A permit from the State Government body Heritage Victoria who had listed the hotel was also issued. The National Trust appealed the planning permit to VCAT, which determined that they had no jurisdiction over a place on the Victorian Heritage Register, a decision which the Trust took to the Supreme Court of Victoria, but lost in September 2010. In response to the concerns, the Victorian Ombudsman was asked to examine the decision making process, and the report handed down in February 2011 found a number of flaws, but could only recommend better processes in the future. An Age newspaper investigation summarised what had happened.
  In May 2010, the Senate of Australia officially recognised the national significance of the Windsor Hotel.
  Further permits from the State Government body Heritage Victoria were not resolved until January 2012, and this delay meant the 2010 planning permit would lapse. The new Minister for Planning, Matthew Guy refused an extension, but an appeal to VCAT was successful in August 2012, with work to commence by 10 January 2015.
  In 2013 more extensive works to the interior of the building were proposed which appalled heritage groups, replacing much of the interior except the grand stair, dining room and the 'heritage suites' in the front wing, which were approved by Heritage Victoria in September 2013.
  After this, the owner sought another extension to the original planning permit, which the Minister refused, and upheld by VCAT in August 2014, meaning work must commence by 10 January 2015. In mid 2015, new planning controls for the area were put in place, with a mandatory 40m height limit for the rear part of the Windsor site, much lower than the planned tower. With only very preliminary works having started, the Halim group applied for another extension, this time for completion, which the Minister for Planning refused. Another appeal to VCAT was successful, and in 2016, an extension of the completion date to 
caption: Windsor at dusk
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