Beehive Building (Bendigo Mining Exchange)

Architect: Charles Webb, Williams Boag Architects, 1872, 1929, 1950s, 2018

Building Description

Similar in style to the Royal Arcade and by the same designer, Charles Webb. The original uses of the building include a hotel, a mining exchange, a restaurant, offices and function space. In the 1920s retail stores and a walkway were added downstairs, then in the 1950s the void space was filled in and closed over with lead light and other decorative features, with a lowered ceiling and false walls. The current development uncovers the rich layers of use by removing most if not all of 1950s work, retaining some of 1920s changes and revealing key features of the original building. Future changes have been proposed to encourage use of the first floor by linking to ground-floor uses of the larger casual dining space and other features.

Location