Bathing Boxes Brighton Port Philip Bay.
Dendy Street Beach, just south of Middle Brighton, features 82 colourful bathing boxes which are one of the tourist icons of Melbourne. The boxes share a uniformity of size and build, and a regular arrangement along the beach, and are the only surviving such structures close to the Melbourne CBD A Planning Scheme Heritage Overlay on the boxes by the Bayside City Council restricts alterations, and all retain their Victorian era architecture, such as timber frames, weatherboard sidings, and corrugated iron roofs, without amenities such electricity or running water. The bathing boxes may only be purchased by residents paying local council rates, and as of 2008 were selling for prices in the range of A$200,000, with annual council rates of around A$500, despite their lack of amenities. In 2009 plans were announced to build at least six new bathing boxes in an effort by the council to raise funds in excess of A$1 million in light of the global financial crisis. Original public domain image from Flickr