St Kilda Sea Baths

It was, however, permitted within large timber structures as protection from predatory marine life and away from public view.

[1] The baths changed hands and names, and were regularly destroyed by storms, with up to four at one time operating off St Kilda Beach.

This was at a time when St Kilda was fast becoming a mass market destination, and the these baths featured in many photographs and postcards.

[3] Eventually the City of St Kilda decided to build a grand new structure, with adjoining men's and women's bath, and a range of facilities including a nightclub in the head building on the foreshore, designed by the city's engineering department in an exotic style including Moorish domes and Spanish arches, which opened in 1931.

[1] The main building with its 'hot sea baths' and nightclub remained in operation in a suburb that had declined in reputation, but was still a popular resort.

Council sought various partners and designs amid controversy, with the current building finally decided, and completed in c2000.