Electric Lane to breathe new life into Leederville
May 20, 2021
Hesperia is set to turn an underutilised laneway at the heart of Leederville into a vibrant entertainment precinct.
Connecting the new ABN Building and Leederville Hotel, the laneway represented the opportunity to bring people and places together through retail, hospitality and entertainment. This informed our vision for the project and heavily influencing the design.
Working alongside the City of Vincent, we launched a competition for the public to name the laneway, with Mary-Anne Goulden the proud winner. The name, Electric Lane, is a nod to the history of The Leederville Hotel, which was the first business to have electric lights in 1905.
“As Leederville’s first laneway precinct, Electric Lane will be the start of a new social centre and community hub, a place of value for the wider community,” Hesperia co-founder Adrian Fini stated.
“The goal is to create a better ‘every day’ for the people of Leederville, ensuring there is something for everyone and every occasion.”
When planning the laneway, Hesperia worked with Oclus, a world-renowned Landscape Architecture firm. The team drew inspiration from laneway precincts across the world, in particular Melbourne’s Guildford Lane.
Electric Lane is one of the planned activations to support the development of the ABN Building, which will be a catalyst for renewed activation in the Leederville town centre.
The 9,400 square metre building features a multi-level office, with state-of-the-art ground floor showroom. Centralising the ABN Group’s operations, over 800 ABN employees will be relocated to Leederville. The laneway will support this additional foot traffic, while joining the building to the existing entertainment precinct.
You can learn more about the ABN Building here .