Cameron Offices, Belconnen

The Cameron Offices, are located in the Australian capital Canberra, in the satellite district of Belconnen. The buildings were used to house Australian Commonwealth Government departments, most recently the government superannuation agency, ComSuper. The buildings were designed by John Andrews in the Brutalist style of architecture and constructed between 1970-77.

The buildings were constructed primarily of concrete and consisted of a series of pavilions linked by walkways. In the void between each pavilion, gardens were themed according to different types of vegetation and ecosystems from various parts of Australia. The design qualities of the Cameron Offices were recognised as significant at the time of their construction. In 2005, a section of the buildings were added to the Commonwealth Heritage Register. The Royal Australian Institute of Architects also include the Cameron Offices on their register of significant Australian buildings.

Although located close to a bus interchange, the Cameron Offices have been criticised for being isolated by carparks and being too distant from the central shopping centre. The nature of the voids within the pavilions resulted in windtunnel effects, which combined with the buildings' concrete design to make them unpleasant to walk around, particularly in the winter. Due to these design elements, the Cameron Offices were unpopular with many of the public servants who worked in the buildings.

The offices have been progressively decommissioned and are currently being redeveloped. Two of the pavilions were demolished in late 2006.

All but units 3 and 4 are now being demolished.

By early 2008, all but two of the buildings have either been completely demolished (those to the north), or demolition is well under way (those to the south). The two buildings either side of Cameron Avenue are being retained, and have had some cosmetic repair work done at the street-level entrances.

On the 18th of January, 2008, a car parked outside of the safety fence was crushed when part of a building fell. The building was already partly demolished.http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/01/18/2141312.htm

References

* [http://blog.adonline.id.au/cameron-offices/ article about Cameron Offices redevelopment]
* [http://www.architecture.com.au/i-cms?page=1.3903.50.219.228 article from architecture.com.au]
* [http://www.bbzine.com/archeplus/qmics13.html#cameron comments from ArchE+/BBZine - architecture webpage]
*cite news |title= Architects urge against offices' demolition|url= http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2006/08/07/1708564.htm |work= News: abc.net.au |publisher= Australian Broadcasting Corporation |date= 2006-08-07 |accessdate= 2007-10-19 |quote = The Royal Australian Institute of Architects has called for a halt to demolition work on the Cameron offices at Belconnen in the ACT. ... Institute spokesman Carey Lyon: "They are really the premiere example of a certain school of thought for the design of this city and they are an extraordinary building."
*cite news |title= Cameron complex under demolition, despite heritage concerns |url= http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/10/19/2063826.htm |work= |publisher= Australian Broadcasting Corporation |date= 2007-10-19 |accessdate= 2007-10-19