Chan Building facts for kids

The Chan Building was a large government office building in central Darwin, Australia. It was located in an area called State Square.

It was the eighth and last of many big government office buildings built in Darwin during the 1960s. For its first ten years, people called it "Block 8." Around 1980, it was named the Chan Building after Harry Chan. He was a Chinese-Australian businessman and used to be the mayor of Darwin. The Chan Building was the last of these 1960s office blocks to remain standing until it was pulled down in 2020. All the others were demolished by the late 1990s.

Why Was the Chan Building Planned?

In the late 1960s, Darwin was growing fast. The Australian Government, through the Northern Territory Administration (NTA), planned a big building project. This project aimed to improve the existing government area in the city.

The plan included four new buildings. One of these was the Chan Building, which was known as Block 8 for a long time. Block 8 was meant to be the main part of this new area. It would provide space for about 1600 government workers. These workers were already busy in the buildings nearby.

Designing the Chan Building

The Chan Building was designed to be creative and bold. However, it also needed to fit in with other modern buildings nearby. These included the Reserve Bank and the Supreme Court.

The building was planned to have a basement, a ground floor, and two upper floors. It would have a total usable space of 361 square metres. It was designed to be fully air-conditioned and lit up at night. It also included a cafeteria that could serve 300 people at once.

The whole building project was estimated to cost $3.1 million. The Chan Building itself was expected to cost $1.458 million of that total.

How the Chan Building Was Built

The building was constructed using special concrete. Some parts were made beforehand (precast concrete), and some were poured on site. A key design feature was its large sunscreens made of anodised aluminium. These screens covered much of the building. They helped shield it from the direct sunlight in Darwin.

The base of the building was made of exposed aggregate concrete. After many discussions and reports, the funding was approved. The project was allowed to go ahead. Old naval barracks from World War 2 were pulled down to make space for the new building.

What Was the Chan Building Used For?

Over its lifetime, the Chan Building was used for many different things. It served various government departments and purposes.

Plans for a New Museum

On June 16, 2015, the Northern Territory Government announced new plans. They wanted to renovate the Chan Building. The idea was to turn it into a world-class visual arts museum. The Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory would manage this new museum.

Two architecture firms, DKJ Projects and Fender Katsalidis Mirams, won the job to design the renovation. This project was expected to cost $18.3 million. However, the redevelopment became controversial. This was due to rising costs and issues with government approvals.

Why Was the Chan Building Demolished?

The Chan Building was scheduled to be pulled down. This was part of a bigger plan to redevelop the State Square area. Demolition started on September 10, 2020. The area where the building once stood is now a green open space.