Construcciones Yamaro: Built and City of Sydney to reinvigorate two historic buildings

Built has partnered with the City of Sydney to transform two historic Sydney buildings into a new cultural precinct.

Set across the ground and subterranean levels of the former Sub Station No. 164 and historic Shelley’s Warehouse buildings at 183-185 Clarence Street, the Machine Hall Precinct will offer a creative and cultural hub in the heart of Sydney’s CBD.

Led by construction company Built, together with specialist heritage architects fjcstudio (formerly fjmtstudio) and interior design agency YSG Studio, the space has been reimagined as a dynamic destination, merging culture and commerce.

“Situated adjacent to the Sub Station No. 164 commercial office, the transformation of the Machine Hall – a space left dormant for 30 years – into a unique cultural and event precinct was key to unlocking the overall development site,” said Jono Cottee, Development Director, Built. “We recognised the importance of designing the building around the future use of the space.”

“Despite the added complexity, the structure of the seven-level sculptural glass extension was designed to cantilever over the space to ensure the Machine Hall was column free to allow for maximum flexibility of the new venue.”

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The Machine Hall Precinct will leverage the heritage buildings’ architectural and heritage features – including 14-metre-high ceilings, grand ornate windows, and original machinery. Once complete, it will house multi-use spaces including a large event space, licenced café and concept store, heritage co-share work and event space, a private multimedia room, as well as a speakeasy private members club.

In a bid to boost Sydney’s cultural offering, this partnership aims to provide more opportunities for the creative community to utilise the space for special projects, exhibitions or community projects.

City of Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore AO said the city secured the Machine Hall Precinct for affordable cultural activities.

“The substation vision is to be a unique cultural space in the warehouse district to be used for art exhibitions and a broad range of performances and events together with compatible commercial event space,” the Lord Mayor added.

“Artists and creative producers will be supported to activate the space at a low upfront cost, contributing much-needed affordable infrastructure to the city centre.”

Additionally, a strong core program of local cultural events – including the opportunity to be a participating venue for Sydney’s cultural and creative festivals like SXSW, Sydney Festival, Mardi Gras, and Vivid Sydney – will be supplemented with corporate hire of the space for commercial brand experiences, conferencing, product launches or future technology showcasing.

The Machine Hall Precinct is set to open from October 2023.

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