MOANA CHAMBERS

2012-2017 (This project is now complete)

Activation Partner: City of Perth & Connor Quinlan

Location: Hay Street Mall & Barrack Street, Perth CBD

One of our first Spacemarket projects, the Moana Chambers was a reactivated first-floor above the Hay St Mall in central Perth. The Moana Chambers became a cafe, gallery and co-working space, and still operate as an event space today.

A wholly successful project that housed many great Perth businesses and creatives, most notably Moana Coffee, Moana Project Space (which became Success, which became Polizia) as well as foundation tenants Muse Bureau and Pallet Media.

Undertaken to demonstrate the potential of activating vacant first-floor space, the project showed that spaces such as these can be valuable and necessary.

Words from Museum of Perth:

“The Moana dining hall lay empty and abandoned for over a decade. 

In 2010 a group called Post-Architecture (Nic Brunsdon and Beth George) investigated the site with help the City of Perth and designed new uses for the space.

‘Pallet Media has been heavily involved in the construction/renovation process of Moana Chambers. We have cleaned, sanded, scraped, painted, dusted, mopped, bashed, drilled, sawed and hammered what was once a disused and derelict space into a stunning piece of architecture that showcases everything that is right about Perth and its creative community!’ 

After extensive restoration during 2011, Spacemarket opened offices in 2012 on the first floor. They also designed a contemporary gallery space in a purpose built, wooden cube and a café, which utilised the outdoor space of the balcony.

Artists Kate Mullen and Dale Buckley, instrumental in the restoration works, become the first tenants taking the lease on the gallery pod: the Moana Gallery and Project Space. 

2012 also saw a new ground floor fit out and shop front for Moana Chambers tenant, Valley Girl. 

In 2014 Post-Architecture was honoured for their work in the WA Architecture Awards. Moana Chambers was shortlisted for the Interior award and Commended for a Heritage award.”