2019 OPEN HOUSE MELBOURNE REPORT The Stables, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington CONTENTS
SPONSORS + PARTNERS 4
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 6
PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS 10
VISITATION + IMPACT 14
VISITOR SATISFACTION 16
WEEKEND HIGHLIGHTS 20
JULY PROGRAM 24–28
MARKETING CAMPAIGN 32
SOCIAL MEDIA 33
MEDIA EVALUATION 34
MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS 36–37
VOLUNTEER ENGAGEMENT 40
BUILDING ENGAGEMENT 44
ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF COUNTRY
Our programming exists on what always was and always will be the land of the people of the Kulin nation. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging, as well as to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the wider Melbourne community and beyond. Indigenous sovereignty has never been ceded in Australia and we try to be mindful of this in everything we do, given our focus on the modern built environment.
The Stables, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington 6 2019 SPONSORS NTRODUCTION I & PARTNERS 2019 SPONSORS +
PARTNERSOpen House Melbourne’s success is only possible thanks to the generous support of our sponsors and partners, many of whom have been with us since the start in 2008. We would like to take a moment to thank them for their generosity and for believing in the work that we do.
MAJOR PARTNERS INCLUSIVITY & ACCESS PARTNER
SPONSORS
PRECINCT PARTNERS
PRACTICE PARTNERS
4 7 I NTRODUCTION
THANK YOU!
PROGRAM PARTNERS
MEDIA PARTNERS
IN-KIND PARTNERS
SUPPORTERS
5 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
We’re a small organisation trying to do big things. We believe The Australia Modern Book Launch, Exhibition and the that the more people are informed about the value of good Modern Melbourne film launch were hosted at the Melbourne design in the built environment, the better our cities and School of Design as part of the BE 150 Program and with urban environments will be for everyone, now and in the future. continued support from the Heritage Council of Victoria. We do our work through the much-loved Open House And we did a lot of walking and talking with Jane’s Walks, Weekend, where people come out to celebrate architecture The Metro Tunnel Tours, the West Gate Tunnel Tours, and the city. Increasingly, we are tackling big city topics and a number of other special tours across the Weekend. through major public discussions and debates, tours, and And this is all before we get to the 200 buildings that interviews— in addition to the Melbourne and regional generously opened their doors for the Open House Weekends, we produce over 100+ special events that are Weekend on the 27 and 28th July. designed to build a groundswell of interest in critical issues about our built environment. 97,403 visitors were recorded across 200 Buildings, 1,200 special building tours and 45 special events. For the 2019 Open House Melbourne July program, we took ownership of our city. Melbourne is undergoing radical 700 volunteers, 1,900 building managers, staff and growth and transformation, and to plan for its full potential, volunteers, 45 partners and supporters, and 100 members we need to understand its past and realise collective ownership supported us in making the 2019 Program possible. over its future. In developing our program, we ask the following questions: EMMA TELFER are we highlighting design excellence or at the very least, good Executive Director design? Is sustainability and waste and energy minimisation Open House Melbourne the driver? Does the building contribute to a more resilient city in the face of climate change? Are we illustrating an equitable, inclusive and safe city? Are we representing innovative housing models, which are trying to shift the needle on housing affordability? Are we telling an important story about Melbourne’s past, present or future, including the stories of the Kulin nation? And probably the most important question: are we inspiring you and the next generation of future urbanists to be more engaged, pay attention, take action, and demand better outcomes for the city? Open House Melbourne 2019 challenged us to view Melbourne in new ways. We considered the experience of navigating the city with vision impairment with Urban Tactility, our keynote installation and program in partnership with OoPLA, Cushman & Wakefield, the City of Melbourne, Immigration Museum and Vision Australia. The Heritage Council of Victoria Heritage Address with Kerstin Thompson included a special tour of The Stables, Kerstin’s recent award-winning project for the University of Melbourne. A crowd of 500 plus enjoyed the ARBV supported Speaker Series at The Capitol, held in partnership with The Capitol – RMIT University. And also in partnership with RMIT, the Super Tight Exhibition Opening and Public Talk in partnership with the Design Hub was a highlight. We are podcasting! Who isn’t these days. With the Metro Tunnel Creative Program’s support, we hosted our third This is Public recording at The Espy Podcast Bar and Studio as part of the July program.
6 The Capitol – RMIT University, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington 8 Volunteering at Info Hub, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington 2019 HIGHLIGHTS
2019: A FOCUS ON ACCESS & INCLUSION
An important highlight for this year has been the focus on access and inclusion, which has been amplified by a new partnership with Cushman & Wakefield. Programming included: — Urban Tactility installation by OoPLA at the Immigration Museum reached a wide range of people living with blindness and low vision and fostered awareness and empathy in people living without disability — Auslan interpretation across three Urban Tactility Talks, a Sensory City Tour, and a Parliament House Tour — A special Public Records Office Tour hosted by a deaf tour guide — Special tours of Vision Australia and Seeing Eye Dogs Australia Mobility Training Centre — Temp ramp infrastructure installed at Old Treasury by Cushman & Wakefield to improve access across the Weekend — Rapid Interim Housing Prototype by Summer Foundation display at Melbourne Museum – a housing prototype for newly disabled young people
We look forward to expanding on this important partnership and program in future years.
10 Urban Tactility guided experience, Immigration Museum Courtyard, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Dan Preston 12 Cushman & Wakefield temporary ramp installation, Old Treasury Building, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington VISITATION + IMPACT
HOW MANY? WHO?
Building visitation was up on previous years, with 33% more visits relative to 2018. This pattern included a dramatic 78% increase of first-time participants: 53% of the in-person survey respondents were attending Open House for the first time. OF ATTENDEES WERE FROM METROPOLITAN MELBOURNE The year on year growth of Open House Weekend therefore includes a crucial increase of unique visitors, especially new visitors, rather than return attendees seeing more buildings. 12% Growth of our audience outside of the CBD continued to grow, OF ATTENDEES WERE FROM VICTORIA (ELSWERE) with over 35,000 visits outside of the City of Melbourne across metropolitan Melbourne. 3% 97,403 OF ATTENDEES WERE FROM INTERSTATE WEEKEND BUILDING VISITS 7%
OF ATTENDEES WERE TRAVELING FROM OVERSEAS 61,740
BUILDING VISITS IN THE CITY OF MELBOURNE MUNICIPALITY 12,130
BUILDING VISITS TO PRECINCT PARTNERS CITY OF BOROONDARA, CITY OF MARIBYRNONG AND THE CITY OF HOBSONS BAY
4,045 ATTENDEES PARTICIPATED IN THE EXTENDED JULY EVENTS 34% ATTENDANCE ACROSS
ATTENDING FOR THE FIRST TIME (COMBINED TOTAL FROM THE OPEN HOUSE WEEKEND IN-PERSON AND POST-EVENT SURVEY) AND JULY PROGRAM 101,448
14 101,448
Cairo Flats, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington VISITOR SATISFACTION
OUR VISITORS FIND OPEN HOUSE WEEKEND HIGHLY MEANINGFUL AND ENGAGING – LEARNED SOMETHING ENJOYING EXPERIENCES THAT LEAVE INTERESTING WHILE A LASTING IMPRESSION. ATTENDING OPEN HOUSE To evaluate visitor satisfaction, we not only measured overall ratings of Open House and the Weekend event, but also our visitors’ motivations for attending and specific experiences. Data derives from 1049 responses to the post-event and 677 responses to the in-person surveys.
More than half of our post-event survey respondents rated their overall experience, building visits, volunteers, and building staff as excellent (and over 90% rated these either good or excellent). In-person, rating were even more positive with over 95% 60% rating each component of their experience as excellent.
Over 90% of respondents also agreed they enjoyed WOULD RECOMMEND Open House (or the building they were at) “very much” and found the experience “very interesting”. OPEN HOUSE TO A FRIEND
In terms of how the event impacted our audience, 95% agreed OR FAMILY MEMBER that they learned something interesting at the event, and around 85% agreed the Weekend was thought-provoking and inspiring. Two-thirds our respondents even agreed that the experience made them think deeply. These ratings point to a deep level of engagement and enjoyment. When we asked about their motivation for choosing a particular building or attending the Weekend, over 80% agreed it was for the pure pleasure of the experience (rather than for more practical reasons including for the personal benefit or because they felt they should). 97% In-person, 97% of visitors found people to be friendly, and over three-quarters said they felt free to express their own ideas and opinions and saw their own values reflected in the experience. Again, this indicates that a large majority of our visitors find WOULD LIKE TO ATTEND Open House Weekend highly meaningful and engaging, experiences that leave a lasting impression. Indeed, in the post- MORE OPEN HOUSE EVENTS event survey over 95% of respondents reported they would visit more buildings in their own time, would like to attend more Open House events, and want to stay informed about our future plans. Nearly all respondents (over 96%) would also: recommend Open House to a friend or family member, suggest the Weekend for people interested in architecture, and to people who want to learn more about Melbourne.
Finally, we asked six questions to gauge the extent to which our 98% visitors see Open House as supportive of their enjoyment and engagement. Across those questions, respondents rated Open House four out of five on average. Our visitors not only deeply enjoy the Weekend, but consistently appreciate Open House’s role in creating that experience.
16 97%
The Summit, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Dan Preston 18 If Walls Could Talk: The European Open House, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington WEEKEND HIGHLIGHTS
While the overall number of buildings did not increase in 2019, GENEROUS PRECINCT PROGRAMMING the Weekend program was significantly refined, and included 73 new sites. The City of Melbourne buildings received over University of Melbourne Southbank Precinct Partnership 61,000 visits, with record visitation at multiple sites. programming included over 25 activities including guided The University of Melbourne Southbank Campus – a new tours, talks, exhibitions, and musical performances that Precinct Partner – had 8,500 Weekend visits and over the brought the precinct’s unique architecture to life. The road, ABC Southbank experienced 6,000 visits in one day. Chamber Music and Master of Music (Opera) program alone With a program stretching from Melton in the north, Narre included six performances across the Weekend to thousands Warren in the south, Box Hill in the east and Werribee in the of visitors. west, Open House covers more of metropolitan Melbourne City of Boroondara focused on kids and families than ever before. Visitors were happy to travel - new programming, producing a children’s guide with activities to program Werribee Mansion recorded 3,500 visitors, to engage and entertain at each Boroondara building. as did new precinct partner Hobsons Bay. Both making The guide’s were supported by a strong online presence, up around half of all visits to another new precinct partner – and boroondarra.vic.gov.au ranked fifth in acquisitions to the the City of Boroondara. Open House Melbourne website. They also received record Over 1200 guided tours were conducted, providing a breaking visitation for a precinct outside of the Melbourne direct and personal experience of the impact of good design CBD. and architecture for a total capacity of well over 20,000. TOP TEN BUILDING HIGHLIGHTS* REMARKABLE OPPORTUNITIES Our visitors were asked to select one favourite Open House Melbourne’s oldest and newest secret garden was unlocked Melbourne experience: for 150 lucky visitors on the Parliament House Garden Design 1. ABC Southbank Centre Tour. Visitors gained access to Melbourne’s newest award winning rooftop garden, exploring the 2018 Australian native 2. The Capitol landscape incorporated into the original William Guilfoyle 3. The Ian Potter Southbank Centre design and the exterior of the recently completed Peter Elliott designed Members Annexe. 4. Government House Open House visitors had the opportunity to learn more about 5. Abbotsford Convent two major underground infrastructure projects through the 6. Hawthorn Telephone Exchange and Telstra Museum West Gate Tunnel and Metro Tunnel Tours. Visitors of the West Gate Tunnel Tours were treated to a once-in-a-lifetime 7. Supreme Court of Victoria opportunity to kit up and get face-to-face with the tunnel 8. Willsmere boring machines. 9. Parliament House 10. Orica House HERO BUILDINGS
As expected, The Capitol reached maximum capacity in the afternoon and with many more curious visitors keen to see inside. Visitors were invited to self-guide through Melbourne’s most beloved architectural icon, newly refurbished by RMIT and Six Degrees Architects. On the hour tours were hosted by Six Degrees architects who gave a first- hand account of the extensive restoration and design process. Napier Waller House was the star of the always popular residential program, featuring twice in our top 10 media highlights and was one of the most enquired about pre- booked buildings. Melbourne’s most intact arts and crafts house was open with guided tours by the National Trust of Victoria.
*Top ten results skew towards high-capacity venues.
20 Donkey Wheel House, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington 22 Donkey Wheel House, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington JULY PROGRAM
URBAN TACTILITY
A site-specific public installation of tactile indicators in the forecourt of the Immigration Museum, Urban Tactility highlighted how public art and design can make a significant contribution to conversations around important urban issues such as social inclusion, social connectivity and the building of community around a public design project. Urban Tactility negotiated broad contemporary cultural issues exploring our rights as citizens to the city. Building on the thought-provoking nature of the Sensory City tours we ran in partnership with OoPLA in 2017 & 2018, the Urban Tactility installation inspired people to connect with the experience of those living with low vision and blindness and the way they navigate the city. The project had a tri-fold agenda. Firstly, it was a chance to think about how the city can be designed for different communities and users. Secondly, it was a chance to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes. And thirdly, it was a chance to experience the city from a sensory perspective and explore the city beyond the visual. This agenda was amplified by the venue partnership with the Immigration Museum. The installation was activated by guided Sensory Walking Tours, a school program for 50 students from St Gabriel’s and three public conversations about the rationale behind the program, multi-sensory design, and rights to the city.
PRESENTED BY: OoPLA, Open House Melbourne and Cushman & Wakefield – Access and Inclusion partner SUPPORTED BY: Immigration Museum, the City of Melbourne, RMIT University and the University of Melbourne
ATTENDEES ACROSS 45 TALKS, TOURS, EXHIBITIONS AND SCREENINGS AS PART OF OUR EXPANDED JULY PROGRAM 4,045
24 Urban Tactility guided experiences, Immigration Museum Courtyard, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington 26 Parliament House Garden Design Tour, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington JULY PROGRAM CONT.
AUSTRALIA MODERN: DESIGN CITY: BUILT MELBOURNE! FROM THE ICONIC TO THE EVERYDAY This eternally popular annual talk presents a diverse An exhibition and event to launch the latest book on cross-section of design disciplines and building typologies Australian modernism Australia Modern: Architecture, that make up the built fabric of Melbourne. The projects Landscape & Design 1925–1975 edited by Hannah Lewi discussed range from commercial buildings, educational & Philip Goad and published by Thames & Hudson. The buildings, and heritage buildings, to the humble home, exhibition celebrated twentieth- century architecture through and a not-so-humble landscape. 2019 speakers included: newly commissioned photographs and archival images that vividly capture how modernism has shaped Australian society — Samantha Westbrooke – Conservation Architect, National Trust of Australia (Victoria) presented design and legacy of Napier Waller House PRESENTED BY: University of Melbourne BE–150 and Open House Melbourne — Peter Malatt – Director, Six Degrees presented refurbishment of The Capitol
— Sheree Proposch – Principal, Hassell presented MODERN MELBOURNE design of Western Edges Biosciences Building at
Melbourne University We also launched our sixth Modern Melbourne interview with Dione McIntyre, in partnership with the Heritage Council of — Sam Lock – Director, Cox presented design of Victoria and the University of Melbourne’s BE––150 Program. Melbourne Jet Base Modern Melbourne is a series of filmed interviews and rich archival material that documents the extraordinary lives — Emma Templeton – Director, Templeton and careers of some of our most important architects and Architecture presented residential project, Chloe designers including Peter McIntyre, Mary Featherston, Daryl Jackson, Graeme Gunn, Phyllis Murphy, Allan Powell — Con Christopoulos – Restaurateur presented and now Dione McIntyre. portfolio of projects
PRESENTED BY: PRESENTED BY: Heritage Council of Victoria, Open House Melbourne, and Architects Registration Board of Victoria (ARBV) and the University of Melbourne’s BE–150 Program and is made Open House Melbourne possible by the generous support of the interview subjects. SUPPORTED BY: City of Melbourne, The Capitol – RMIT University 2019 HERITAGE ADDRESS WITH KERSTIN THOMPSON
Kerstin Thompson has worked on award winning architectural projects with heritage at their heart. Her recent project, The Stables VCA Faculty of Fine Arts & Music at the University of Melbourne received a Heritage & Educational Architecture Award from the AIA Victorian Chapter in 2018. Kerstin’s practice focuses on architecture as a civic endeavour with an emphasis on user experience and enjoyment of place. Her talk was a thought-provoking look at the role heritage plays in our cities and lives.
PRESENTED BY: The Heritage Council of Victoria and Open House Melbourne SUPPORTED BY: University of Melbourne
28 2019 Heritage Address with Kerstin Thompson, Federation Hall, VCA – University of Melbourne, July Program 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington 28 If Walls Could Talk: The European Open House, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington MARKETING CAMPAIGN
New in 2019, a free map was available from the Open House Info Hub at the Melbourne Town Hall. 4000 copies were WEBSITE ACQUISITIONS distributed by Open House volunteers in the lead up to and over the Weekend. The Open House print program was again The following websites were crucial in directing traffic distributed and sold through Readings bookstores. to the Open House Melbourne website: Our three most powerful marketing communications activities 1. Broadsheet Melbourne – 4,356 referrals continue to be our media campaign, managed by partners 2. Link.tree (Instagram) – 1,470 referrals Zilla & Brook, our email database, and our website. 3. Whats On blog (City of Melbourne) – 1,090 referrals 4. ABC Melbourne – 752 referrals 5. City of Boroondarra – 606 referrals WEBSITE
Compared to 2018, traffic to the website increased by 6.5% during the campaign period (May – August) with a total of E–NEWSLETTER 141,288 unique visits. Along with the increase in number of unique visits, the users viewed more pages per session and remained on the website for longer sessions. 41,623 161,516 SUBSCRIBERS TO EMAIL DATABASE UNIQUE VISITS TO THE WEBSITE, JAN – AUG 2019 35% 9% AVERAGE CAMPAIGN OPEN RATE INCREASE IN SESSIONS COMPARED TO 2018 20% 6.5% AVERAGE CAMPAIGN CLICK RATE INCREASE IN NEW USERS COMPARED TO 2018 11%
The most visited pages on the website were: INCREASE IN EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS 1. Building List 2. What’s On / July Program Open House Melbourne has fostered a loyal community who continue to connect with our programming. Our 3. Itinerary Function database of subscribers are incredibly active and engaged. The itinerary function continues to be a popular tool on the This year was one of strongest campaigns yet, with eight website, with a large part of our audience looking to plan their e-newsletters distributed over the campaign period. Weekend in advance. The highest performing links across the entire campaign were: 1. Sneak peek news item The most visited building pages, and their number of unique 2. Building list page views throughout the campaign, included: 3. Print program purchase news item 1. Australia 108 – 6,423 4. Key dates news item 2. Donkey Wheel House – 6,304 5. Memberships news item 3. Willsmere – 6,349 4. ABC Southbank Centre – 5,737 5. The Capitol – 6,096 6. Government House – 5,647 7. Port of Melbourne Boat Tours – 5,314 8. Ann Street Morgue – 5,413 9. Boyd House II – 5,076 10. Arts Centre Melbourne – 4,546
SOCIAL MEDIA
Open House Melbourne worked with Verity Campbell Communications to manage the social media campaign to achieve event awareness and engagement. TOTAL SUBSCRIBERS Posting frequency was improved across all channels, leading ACROSS EMAIL AND to a great response from the audience. SOCIAL MEDIA DATABASE
The period of highest audience engagement and reach on Facebook began just prior to the program launch in June, and continued to be strong through to August. The Open House Melbourne Facebook account experienced 9% growth in followers throughout the 2019 campaign (May – August). The increase of 2,126 follows is almost double 92,888 compared to the 2018 campaign. 26,385 INSTAGRAM TOTAL FOLLOWERS
The Instagram content spanning May – August was a great driver for the Melbourne campaign. The highest number of 9% profile visits from a single post was recorded at just over 300, from 10,573 impressions, for This Is Public podcast, posted INCREASE IN FOLLOWS on 30 May. The campaign benefited from this post and was
buoyed by the success of the strong start. The most popular post on Facebook, a ‘sneak peak’ of the 2019 Weekend, featuring our Top 5 buildings for 2019: The The consistent rate of posting content also contributed to Capitol, Ian Potter Southbank Centre, Melbourne Quarter, the overall boost in followers and engagement, with 37 posts 122 Roseneath St and Denton Corker Marshall Studio was over the 3 month period, an average of 3 posts per week. posted on 23 June 2019, had an incredible 18.1K reach and a 12% engagement rate. (535 Reactions, Comments & Shares) . Engagement lifting from a year-round average of 164 per post to 236 per post during the campaign. That’s an This type of engagement was more than double that of any improvement of 44%. post in previous years. Reach lifted from a year-round average of 3,759 per post to View the post. 5,051 per post during the campaign. That’s an improvement of 34%. TWITTER 14,915
Engagement on Twitter also improved, averaging 1.0% per TOTAL FOLLOWERS tweet in the July period, up from 0.6% in June, and 0.4% in May. We experienced a 1.5% increase in followers throughout campaign. 17% The entire campaign period generated a total 203, 200 impressions. The most popular time was the Saturday of INCREASE IN FOLLOWS Open House Weekend with over 23,000 impressions for the day. This proves it’s importance among attendees for up-to- date event information on the Weekend itself. The most popular post was the announcement of the winner of our #OpenUpMelb Photo Competition – with 817 likes – the most liked post recorded for Open House Melbourne to date. 9,965 View the post
TOTAL FOLLOWERS
MEDIA EVALUATION
MEDIA REACH
The successful 2019 Open House Melbourne media campaign, managed by partners Zilla & Brook, generated a total PR value of $3,770,367. Zilla & Brook continue to increase the reach of our events by applying creative and low-cost strategies. With a strong emphasis on community and local press, through to national broadcasters, the exposure captures broad areas of interest and emphasises the breadth of the program. The distribution of media coverage for the 2019 campaign consisted of: — Radio: 32% — Online: 32% — Print: 21% — TV: 15%
VIEW THE FULL REPORT Click to view media clippings from the campaign as well as a breakdown of the circulation and PR Value.
TOTAL REACH ACROSS PRINT, ONLINE, TV AND RADIO 16,574,293 MEDIA HITS GENERATED FROM MARCH TO AUGUST 356 34 Parliament House Garden Design Tour, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS
‘Waller House’ online story in Domain and print story in The Age, by Jenny Brown.
‘Type Street Apartment’ story in Home Living, Herald Sun, by Natasha Perera.
‘Open House wrap’ online story in realestate.com.au and print story in Herald Sun, by Samantha Landy. ‘Government House’ story on Channel 9’s Postcards – Rebecca Judd tours Government House. ‘Government House’ story on Channel 9’s Postcards – Rebecca Judd tours Government House.
‘Williamstown Botanic Gardens’ online and print story in The Age, by Megan Backhouse.
‘City of Melbourne Art and Heritage Collection’ televised story on Channel 9 Evening News, featuring interview with Lord Mayor Sally Capp.
Interview with Open House Melbourne Director, Emma Telfer on ABC Radio Melbourne, Afternoon with Richelle Hunt
‘Rapid Interim Housing’ televised story on SBS World News.
‘Ann Street Morgue’ location for Channel 10 live televised weather cross, by Mike Larkan 38 Parliament House Garden Design Tour, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington VOLUNTEER ENGAGEMENT
OPEN HOUSE PROGRAMS WOULD NOT BE POSSIBLE WITHOUT THE EXTRAORDINARY WOULD RETURN TO COMMITMENT OF OUR VOLUNTEERS. VOLUNTEER FOR OPEN HOUSE
702
VOLUNTEERS RECRUITED AND SHIFTS COMPLETED 3000+ 99% VOLUNTEER HOURS CONTRIBUTED
A GREAT WAY TO TAKE PART 18-79 IN AN ICONIC EVENT THAT AGE RANGE OF OPEN HOUSE VOLUNTEERS CELEBRATES MELBOURNE. ALSO. A WONDERFUL CHANCE TO EXPERIENCE THE EVENT 82% FROM ANOTHER ANGLE.” VOLUNTEER TO STAY INFORMED AND LEARN MORE ABOUT THE CITY’S ARCHITECTURE
81% I HAVE SO MUCH FUN EVERY VOLUNTEER TO GIVE BACK TO AN EVENT THEY ENJOY YEAR, I COULDN’T IMAGINE AS A PATRON NOT BEING ABLE TO HELP OUT! I LOVE BEING PART OF THE WHOLE EVENT, I LOVE THE 42% VIBE OF THE CITY, I LOVE PARTICIPATED FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 2019 THE EXCITEMENT THAT ALL VISITORS HAVE.” 24%
HAVE VOLUNTEERED FOR FIVE OR MORE YEARS IT’S JUST A GREAT EXPERIENCE AND FUN AT THE SAME TIME. MEMORABLE FOR THE DIVERSITY OF VISITORS, THEIR GENUINE EXPRESSIONS OF APPRECIATION, LOTS OF KIDS EXPLORING AND LEARNING ABOUT MELBOURNE’S HISTORY AND THE PASSION SHOWN BY THE BUILDING OWNERS AND THEIR TEAMS OF VOLUNTEERS.”
40 99%
Melbourne Quarter Sky Park, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington 42 Volunteering at If Walls Could Talk: The European Open House, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington BUILDING ENGAGEMENT
In 2019 we made significant improvements to our building selection process. In-line with our mission to foster public 200 appreciation for architecture and public engagement in the future of our cities, we identified a number of criteria to assess BUILDINGS PARTICIPATED suitability of buildings and events: — Does the building represent design excellence? Is it award-winning? 73 — Is it innovative, pushing boundaries and/or a great addition to the skyline? NEW TO PROGRAM — Is this a significant heritage building? Is it a rare example? — Is this an exemplar in the space of Environmentally 1100+ Sustainable Design (ESD)? BUILDING VOLUNTEERS SUPPORTED THEIR SITE — Does the building contribute to a more resilient city? — Does the building contribute to a more equitable, inclusive and safe city? — Does the building represent innovation in new housing 800+ models, shifting the needle on housing affordability? PAID STAFF SUPPORTED THEIR SITE Providing better designed public housing? — Does the building tell an important story about Melbourne’s past, present or future? About Melbourne as a multi-cultural city? 97% — Does the building offer insights into how the city WERE SATISFIED OR VERY SATISFIED WITH THEIR operates? EXPERIENCE AND WOULD PARTICIPATE AGAIN — Does the building (or tour) offer a once in a lifetime/very special opportunity? — Will there be a great experience for families? Are we 96% inspiring the next generation of design professionals/ future urbanists/active citizens? PARTICIPATE TO PROMOTE THEIR ACTIVITIES TO A NEW AND DIFFERENT AUDIENCE, AND ENGAGE WITH THE LOCAL COMMUNITY 90% WE PARTICIPATE TO PROMOTE OUR APPROACH TO ARCHITECTURE AND PARTICIPATE TO ENCOURAGE THE GENERAL PUBLIC TO SPARK DISCUSSION ON WHAT HEALTHY, VALUE AND BECOME ADVOCATES FOR THEIR BUILDING SUSTAINABLE BUILDINGS ARE.”
“A MASSIVE THANK YOU FOR INCLUDING MY HOUSE IN THE PROGRAM. WE HAD SUCH A GREAT DAY – EVERYONE WHO CAME THROUGH THE HOUSE WAS JUST WE PARTICIPATE TO ENCOURAGE SO LOVELY. I WAS VERY DAUNTED ABOUT PEOPLE TO THINK ABOUT THE THE PROSPECT OF OPENING THE HOUSE VALUE OF GOOD DESIGN AND TO STRANGERS, BUT IT WAS SUCH AN IN EMPLOYING ARCHITECTS.” OVERWHELMINGLY POSITIVE EXPERIENCE. OUR VOLUNTEERS, WERE AMAZING AS WELL. WHAT A GREAT WEEKEND!”
44 Building host at Ian Potter Southbank Centre, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington Covers: Parliament House Garden Design Tour, Open House Melbourne 2019. Photo: Nick Bebbington