kp_laneways

Go to: | Home | Birrarung Marr | Eureka Tower | Theatres and Musicals | Old Melbourne Gaol | Crown Casino | **Laneways** **Laneways and Arcades** Today Melbourne's lanes offer a variety of delights, ranging from retail and boutiques to cafes and bars, to street art. Some lanes of Melbourne, however, retain their original form, creating a glimpse of Melbourne's History. In 1839 it was Robert Hoddle's job to design the streets of Melbourne. He had to create streets that were able to fit large cartloads of goods for delivery. His final design consisted of wide, magnificent main streets. People then started to create their own human-sized web of lanes behind the public face of Melbourne. These small streets offered more peculiar, varying diversions from the  normal. Some of the most popular lanes and arcades in Melbourne are: This site used to hold George and George's Drapers until a tragic fire forced them to move further up Collins St. Some businessmen realised the value of the area, commonly known as The Block, and hired the architect David C. Askew to design a shopping arcade, based looseley on Galleria Vittoria in Milan. It was built in two parts: one in 1891, and the other in 1893. Today it is one of Melbourne's most richly decorated interior spaces. It is named after Charles and William Degraves who came to Melbourne in 1849, from Hobart, Tasmania. They were pioneer merchants, who bought an acre of land on the corner of Flinder Street and Degraves Street. William Degraves was also a member of melbourne's Legislative Council.  The walls of Hosier Lane are covered in graffiti and street art. The scene has become popular for fashion shoots and even wedding photiograpghy. It is featured in the state-sponsord book //The Melbourne Design Guide// and in the //Lose Yourself in Melbourne// ad campaign.
 * **The Block Arcade**;
 * **Degraves Street;**
 * **Hosier Lane;**

 * **Centre Place;** Centre Place was originally named Cummings Alley, until in 1915 it joined to Centreway and became Centre Court, and eventually Centre Place. In 1980 it became one of the 'first generation of revitalised laneways'. It was named after the Union hotel that was situated on Little Collins Street durng the  1860's. In 2008 this lane, which had previously been uninviting and full of 'tags', became the canvas for the City of Melbourne Street Art Project. It is now liscensed to be a space for all kinds of street art.
 * **Union Lane;**

We looked at 2 different ads for the laneways of Melbourne. The first was on [|Qantas' Travel Insider website]. This site is full of tips for travellers, places to go, and things to see in Melbourne. The layout of the page was not very appealling, but the pictures and writing were very interesting. We found the information short and sweet, very to the point. From the text, we feel that the lanes of Melbourne are an intriguing, must-see attraction to our city. The paragraph provided about Hosier Lane was especially inviting, and makes us want to visit. Next we looked at the That's Melbourne City "City Laneways" brochure. We found it perfect for people visiting Melbourne who have heard about the laneways and want to know more in order to see them. It has loads of good information about the lanes, places to go and interesting things you can do there. It showed a wide range of types of lanes in the city using both effective writing, and fantastic pictures. After reading this brochure we feel an urge to visit the exciting laneways and arcades that can be found just behind the bustle of the city.

By Rosie