1997 inaugural prize – Meyers Place
| Meyers Place (small bar) | |
|---|---|
 | |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | Contemporary urban recycled |
| Location | Melbourne CBD |
| Address | 20 Meyers Place |
| Town or city | City of Melbourne, Victoria |
| Country | Australia |
| Coordinates | 37°48′44.66″S144°58′20.55″E / 37.8124056°S 144.9723750°E |
| Construction started | 1994 |
| Opened | 1994 |
| Relocated | 2017 |
| Closed | 2021 (at 24 Crossley St) |
| Cost | A$30,000 (1994) |
| Client | Six Degrees Architects |
| Owner | Six Degrees Architects |
| Dimensions | |
| Other dimensions | 5 metres (16 ft) across x 10 metres (33 ft) deep |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 1 |
| Floor area | 100 m2 (1,100 sq ft) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Six Degrees Architects |
| Awards and prizes | 1997 Melbourne Prize |
Background
From the conception of the prize a range of scales and project types have been awarded that significantly added to the civic and cultural identity of Melbourne's CBD. The first winner in 1997 was a small low budget eponymous laneway bar known simply as Meyers Place as it was located in Meyers Place, a narrow north–south lane running off Bourke Street in the east end of the city, in the same small building that the late night Waiters Club Restaurant was located in. The bar was meant to be untitled but informally used its laneway name as its moniker. It was designed, built, operated and owned by Six Degrees Architects, with a start up cost of around $30,000 in 1994 ($60,000 in 2022).
Melbourne's first laneway bar
The project was created by the young office as a means of displaying their innovative skills not only as designers and builders, but also as urbanists, where architecture and design could stimulate city life and create new communities and activities in the city after hours. [7]
"We wanted it to be difficult to find, with no sign, down a back lane."
The bar was the first to use the new General Licence Class B and was at the forefront of the developing word–of–mouth small laneway bar scene that spread through the back streets and lanes of Melbourne in the mid to late 1990s. These bars became a significant part of the cultural landscape of the city, providing interesting fit outs in out-of-the-way locations. The bar scene that followed provided not only a place to meet but also helped activate the evening economy of the city, a great change from the rustbelt recession years of the early 1990s when the city was empty at night. A review described the venue as such "..the bar's roller door, shagpile-carpeted walls and recycled timber interior was the mainspring of a recycled aesthetic which became a Melbourne signature. Cramped and casual, regulars would comment that it felt more like a party than a venue, especially at 2am after a few Melbourne Bitter longnecks." [8]
"Melbourne’s strength is the small bars and restaurants that don’t announce themselves. It’s the opposite of branding. Melbourne’s subtle, a city of discovery. Very early on we were saying ‘let’s not be obvious, let’s encourage Melbourne solutions’. One of the first little laneway bars was in Meyers Place, by Six Degrees Architects. They were the first recipients of the Melbourne Prize for projects that enhanced the real character of Melbourne because that’s exactly what they did. Discovering bars and cafes has become part of Melbourne’s experience, the harder to find, the more the desire.” [9]
— Rob Adams, City Architect, City of Melbourne
Closure and relocation
The bar closed in June 2017 after the long held lease was not renewed. [10] The bar was relocated by Drew Pettifer and Heather Larkin piece–by–piece — a city block north to 24 Crossley Street — with most of the fitout making the move to new premises. Meyers Place 2.0 closed in March 2021, a year after the first Covid–19 pandemic lockdowns severely impacted Melbourne's hospitality scene. [11] In 2024 the bar was reopened under the name of Bard's Apothecary by Carmel and Matthew Molony. “We feel like we’re holding on to a little bit of Melbourne history...You don’t get much more Melbourne laneway than this bar. The legacy lives on, and we celebrate that" noted Carmel. [12]
1997 commendations
Three commendations were also given in the first year of the Prize to; Drewery Lane apartments by Warren J. Foster; Emery apartment, Melbourne Terrace Apartments, by Nonda Katsalidis; and the Promenade at Southbank by The Buchan Group with Denton Corker Marshall. [13]
