Doma appoints Bloc to replace PBS Building at The Melrose development in Woden

Work at the 184-apartment Melrose development stopped earlier this month, before the contracted construction company, PBS Building, entered administration on March 7.

Doma has now appointed local builder Bloc to complete the 16-storey tower.

Doma general manager Gavin Edgar said the group will use a trust account to ensure subcontractors are paid directly for future work.

"We are working with the administrators to terminate the PBS contract to get the project moving again and are pleased that our long-term building partner, Bloc, has been able to step in and help us get the project back on track," he said.

"Given the number of businesses impacted by the collapse of PBS, Doma have instigated the use of a trust account for all future payments to ensure that any money paid by the developer for works completed gets paid directly to the subcontractors for this project.

"The important thing for us is to get workers back on site and restore their incomes and we will work with Bloc to assist subcontractors wherever we can with cashflow."

The Bloc team spent last week making the site safe, changing the building permits and meeting with existing subcontractors and suppliers, the developer said.

The developer also confirmed Bloc has engaged a structural engineer to assess the work completed by PBS Building to ensure necessary quality checks are undertaken before construction recommences.

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The Melrose is the first of four towers planned for the Woden project, which will comprise 670 units once complete.

The site was one of 24 active sites PBS Building was working on when it entered voluntary administration.

There were 11 active sites in the ACT, eight in NSW and five in Queensland.

One of those was the major redevelopment of the Belconnen Markets.

Elanor Investors Group, the owner of the markets, appointed a new builder on Friday.

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