Project Team

Interior Design: Joseph Pang
Architects: The Buchan Group
Main Contractor: Equiset Grollo Group

Suppliers

Rooms
Window treatment and soft goods: Turner Bros
Carpet: Brintons
Fixed & loose FF&E: IJF, Winmost Hong Kong
Bathroom tapware and vanity basins: Meco
Bathroom fittings: Burley Hardware
Room chairs: Commercial Seating
Artwork: Graphis

Public areas furnishing
water: Vestal Water
Public areas loose FF&E by Winmost Hong Kong
Lights: Yellow Goat, Euroluce, ECC,
Feature fireplace: Eco Smart
Carpet: Brinton Carpets
Rugs: Tai Ping supplied through Korda Brothers
Art collection: Art Bank
Restaurant chairs: Kezu
Feature mosaic tile mural: Bisazza, installed by Defazio

The Intercontinental Melbourne, previously known as the Rialto hotel, was built from a conversion of two heritage buildings, the Rialto and the Winfield, both designed & built in the 19th century. The Rialto Building was designed as a wool store, by the well-known architect William Pitt, who designed a number of the more prominent buildings around the city at the same time.

Separated by a bluestone cobbled laneway( now the hotel atrium) is the Winfield building, the Winfield building was designed by Architect Richard Speight Jnr, in a Romanesque style, the Winfield building has once been the host of many businesses, including the wool & wheat traders.

The Rialto & the Winfield buildings were converted into the Rialto Hotel in the 1970’s, with the Rialto Wing, modified to contain approximately 50 rooms, maintaining the original brick façade & balconies with the original cast iron ballustrates. The Winfield wing, virtually rebuilt to host over 200 hotel rooms, with only the Collins Street front heritage façade left from original building. In between the two buildings is a 30 meters high by 70 meters long atrium.

The Rialto hotel was rebranded Le Meridien Melbourne in 1991. Following the recent major refurbishment commenced in November 2007, the hotel was finally reopened in December 2008 and rebranded Intercontinental Melbourne, The Rialto. The Collins Street entry remains as the main hotel front door, with Flinders lane entry significantly enhanced during the recent refurbishment.

Design brief & approach

The design brief from Eureka Fund Management, property owner, & Intercontinental Hotel Group, hotel operator, is to create a modern Five star luxury hotel, with high end business & leisure travelers as prime targets.

This approach to combine modern design, & the existing heritage elements has become a common design language, carried through all the hotel front of house public areas and room suites.

Design & elements

Local paving material ( blue stone) has been used extensively all through the Collins street level & the Flinders lane level. reminiscing the heritage blue stone cobble lane way at Flinders lane between the 2 buildings ( still existing but covered from public usage for safety reasons).

Wow factor upon arrival at the hotel foyer is the atrium, with the Winfield wing facade transformed into a biggest “light wall”, with over 120 (two meters tall) custom designed colour changing LED light columns, creating a building facade with “emotions & moods” through this constant change in colour & light, to suit different hours of a day. This lighting effect also presents a contemporary overlay to the Winfield façade, in contrast to the heritage Rialto façade.

The hotel reception, located on Collins street level, is paved with polished white Callacatta marble, leather clad reception counters with the custom designed furniture, hand made rug designed with “damask” inspired pattern, accentuated by moulded glass pendant light, presenting a luxury feel.

Behind the hotel reception is the lobby lounge “Market Lane”, over looking the atrium. Modern style furnishing to create a “Homely lounge room”.
Cosy feel is further enhanced by the fire place wall, finished in sparkling steel cloth.

Feature hand made rugs on timber floor. Rug design is inspired by the Neo Gothic architectural elements. Feature back bar counter is finished with dark bronze mirror, reflecting on the moody lighting atmosphere.

Art pieces collection displayed in the reception & lobby lounge are creations from local Australians artists, supplied by Art Bank.

The entry foyer is linked to the meeting room floor & the bar/ restaurant at Flinders Lane level with a grand staircase. The feature staircase, in its new zinc & glass cladding, is created by architects from The Buchan Group, this has become a most significant architectural element in the atrium, this also forms a platform from which the beauty of the complete atrium can be admired.

All meeting & function rooms are located at the lower ground floor, together with a business centre, & the executive boardrooms.

Feature mirror & pendant lights have been introduced to the pre-function area, departing from the usual corporate look in many other hotels of similar status.
Custom designed carpet in a charcoal & gold coloured lineal pattern, with oversized “damask” pattern. Sleek & modern styled Executive boardroom provides state of the art AV for conferencing.

The hotel main restaurant & bar are located at the Flinders lane level accessible via the Grand Staircase & the hotel lifts. The bar, known as the Blue stone bar, is designed in the concept of a wine cellar, with main bar counter in black Zinc cladding, colour glass finished lit back bar unit becoming a focal point. Central communal table made from recycled timber. 2.4 meters tall timber cabinets with steel mesh as wine storage also creating individual alcoves, plush leather sofas evoking clubby feel.

The restaurant, named the Alluvial Restaurant, sits between the bar & the Flinders Lane hotel entry. Located at the bottom of the atrium, the design of the restaurant takes the form of a European Brasserie, with open planned table setting & leather upholstered banquette seats, the atrium is sun drenched during day time, creating an alfresco feel, dinning mood in the evening is cosy, enhanced by custom designed lighting, with special lamp shade made from steel mesh. Separate show kitchen with feature cooking station, hot & cold buffets. Main talking point is the forty meters long mosaic mural with “damask” pattern as the main wall design on the Winfield facade, running the full length of the restaurant & bar, reminiscing the classical European heritage of the architecture…….as well as the stylish city of Melbourne.

Room and suite design

Standard rooms are designed in a colour scheme with mainly black & accent yellow colour, woven chocolate brown coloured damask fabric as bed throw, lime wash finished timber used on furniture items resulting in a colour palette almost like a sepia toned photograph, evoking an old world feel inside a modern designed room. All standard room bathrooms are designed with a double shower to replace the bathtub.

The colour scheme of the Club rooms is characterized by the lime green & hot pink woven fabrics as high lights, plush leather lounge for extra level of luxury.