Eureka Tower is a skyscraper located in the Southbank of Melbourne, Victoria. It is one of Australia’s tallest buildings, claiming the title of third tallest skyscraper in the country. Measuring from base to roof alone, the Eureka tower is the second tallest skyscraper in Australia. It held the title of tallest residential tower in the world until the completion of Dubai’s Ocean Heights and the HHHR Tower.
The Eureka Tower first opened to the public on the 11th of October, 2006. Construction began in 2002 and the exterior of the tower was finished by June 2006. Overall, the construction process took a total of 4 years and 2 months. The project cost approximately $500 million, making it one of the most expensive buildings in Oceania.
Conception and Funding: Eureka tower Melbourne
The Eureka Tower was developed by Daniel Grollo of Grocon, Tad Fried and tower architect Nonda Katsalidis. Fender Katsalidis Architects were responsible for the design of the tower which was built by Grocon (Grollo Australia). Sustainability was pivotal to the conception and execution of the tower, with Fender Katsalidis becoming the largest architecture firm in Australia to become certified carbon neutral.
Today
The Eureka tower is primarily a residential tower. However, level 88 is known as the Skydeck (a name often used to refer to the tower itself) and provides a viewing platform for visitors, tourists, residents and guests. At 285m, the Skydeck is the highest public vantage point in the Southern Hemisphere.
The tower features a number of state of the art facilities for residents and the public alike. The Voyager theatre provides a uniquely immersive experience using 24 award-winning 6D pod chairs that transport guests into the world of the film. Bar 88 is a critically acclaimed New-York inspired bar with stunning views and a Cocktails in the Clouds package for the perfect night out. The Edge is another popular Skydeck experience, where guests can step out atop the clouds in a transparent glass cube which protrudes from the tower 300 metres above Melbourne’s streets.
Eureka Skydeck layout
Ground Floor – Floor 9: The first 9 levels of the Eureka Skydeck are absolutely packed with facilities for residents as well as the general public. On the first nine floors you can find offices, restaurants, and a resident’s carpark with enough space for 814 cars.
Floor 9 – Floor 11: The next two floors feature a swimming pool, more retail stores, public viewing areas, and a health and fitness centre.
Floor 11 – Floor 24: Residential apartments take up floor 11 to floor 80. They vary greatly in size, from small studios to luxury penthouses. The apartments are divided into three areas, each with their own separate entrance and exit. The apartments found between floor 11 and floor 24 are the “river rise” apartments.
Floor 25 – Floor 52: The apartments between floor 25 to floor 52 are the “premier rise” apartments.
Floor 53 – Floor 80: These are primarily the most luxurious apartments, known as the “sky rise.”
Eureka Tower apartment sizes
The Eureka Skydeck is home to 556 residential apartments divided between floors 11-80. Every apartment in the Eureka tower has a private laundry, openable windows and a balcony or winter garden. The size of the apartment is usually determined by the floor level. For instance:
All of the apartments between the floors 11-24, 26-52, and 54-55 have an area of 1,424 metres squared (slightly larger than the national average although new apartments are being built larger than ever before). Levels 56-64 have a floor space of 1,000 square metres and levels 65-87 have approximately 650 m2 in floor area.
History and details in design of the Eureka building Melbourne
The Eureka tower is named after the people’s rebellion during the Eureka stockade. “Eureka” is a derivation of an ancient Greek word meaning “I have found (it).” The word’s popularization as an exclamation of success is generally attributed to the scholar Archimedes, who supposedly became so excited about a scientific discovery that he ran naked through the city streets, shouting “Eureka!”
The term Eureka quickly became used to celebrate a fortunate or satisfying discovery. Such connotations eventually became tied to the joyousness of the gold rush – first in America as prospectors looking for gold supposedly shouted “Eureka” upon finding gold, and eventually during the Australian gold rush also. The Eureka stockade was a series of conflicts between gold miners and the British administration in Victoria during the Australian gold rush. It is (somewhat contentiously) regarded as the beginning of Australian democracy and political freedoms.
The Eureka tower pays homage to the events of the stockade through design, with the building’s crown representing the wealth bought by the gold rush and the red stripe an acknowledgment of the blood spilt during the Eureka Stockage conflict. Each of the top 10 floors in the Eureka tower are painted with 24 carat gold. The building also takes inspiration from the flag of the Eureka Stockage, with blue glass cladding and white lines a tribute to the flag’s artistic composition.
Eureka Building Melbourne Facts
Address: 7 Riverside Quay, Southbank VIC 3006
Price for one night: $147
Open hours:
Monday & Tuesday – closed
Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday – 12pm-9pm
Friday & Saturday – 12pm-10pm (last entry at 9:30)
Elevator: The lift to the Eureka Skydeck takes just 40 seconds to climb from the ground to the top floor.
Steps: The Eureka tower has 3,680 steps between the ground floor and the 88th floor, which guests can attempt to climb during the Eureka Tower Climb each year.
