Latest news with #theToffinTown
Sydney Morning Herald
27-04-2025
- Business
- Sydney Morning Herald
How a nightclub baron turned a gutted heritage building into a sculptural home
Camillo and Monika Ipolliti have done more than most big-name developers to put their stamp on Melbourne's landscape. As the founders of legendary venues such as Revolver, Cookie and the Toff in Town, the nightclub impresario and visual artist have played a part in crafting the city's cultural fabric, including helping pioneer the notion of the 'vertical laneway' at Swanston Street's Curtin House. It's little wonder that the risk-taking, style-forward Ipollitis – let's call them the Medicis of Melbourne – extended their vision to their own unique city home: a heritage-listed townhouse smack-bang in the middle of the CBD. Now on the market, 128-130 Little Lonsdale Street is a singular proposition from a colourful couple. The grand three-level Victorian-era Leitrim Hotel was constructed in 1888 for the Victoria Brewing Company in the heart of the city's notorious red-light district. It's subsequently had quite the life. A Chinese cabinetmaker later occupied the site until the 1920s, and it was converted into offices in the 1980s. Monika encountered the building – 'One of the most beautiful in the CBD, and we have a lot,' she explained– purely by chance in 2008. She and Camillo had just finished renovations on their North Balwyn home when a chance left-hand turn driving through the city revealed the 'for sale' sign. 'My husband absolutely hated me for a minute,' she said, 'because we'd just finished this perfect house, and then I went and upended everything again.'
The Age
27-04-2025
- Business
- The Age
How a nightclub baron turned a gutted heritage building into a sculptural home
Camillo and Monika Ipolliti have done more than most big-name developers to put their stamp on Melbourne's landscape. As the founders of legendary venues such as Revolver, Cookie and the Toff in Town, the nightclub impresario and visual artist have played a part in crafting the city's cultural fabric, including helping pioneer the notion of the 'vertical laneway' at Swanston Street's Curtin House. It's little wonder that the risk-taking, style-forward Ipollitis – let's call them the Medicis of Melbourne – extended their vision to their own unique city home: a heritage-listed townhouse smack-bang in the middle of the CBD. Now on the market, 128-130 Little Lonsdale Street is a singular proposition from a colourful couple. The grand three-level Victorian-era Leitrim Hotel was constructed in 1888 for the Victoria Brewing Company in the heart of the city's notorious red-light district. It's subsequently had quite the life. A Chinese cabinetmaker later occupied the site until the 1920s, and it was converted into offices in the 1980s. Monika encountered the building – 'One of the most beautiful in the CBD, and we have a lot,' she explained– purely by chance in 2008. She and Camillo had just finished renovations on their North Balwyn home when a chance left-hand turn driving through the city revealed the 'for sale' sign. 'My husband absolutely hated me for a minute,' she said, 'because we'd just finished this perfect house, and then I went and upended everything again.'
