The Timber Yard Melbourne: Events, Capacity, Ownership Guide

Port Melbourne’s waterfront has always had a talent for reinvention—first as a working harbour, then as a creative playground. The Timber Yard, a 6,000-square-metre warehouse that evolved from timber storage to one of Victoria’s most talked-about event spaces, received a $3 million glow-up in 2025 that pushed it into a new league entirely.

Melbourne Renovation Cost: $3 million · Dublin Housing Units: 47 · Dublin Block Heights: 3-7 storeys · Primary Melbourne Use: Function venue · Architect (Dublin): O’Donnell + Tuomey

The key details about The Timber Yard versus its unrelated namesakes are summarised below.

What is the timber yard?

The name “timber yard” covers at least three distinct projects across Australia and Ireland, which creates genuine confusion for anyone searching online. The most prominent is The Timber Yard in Port Melbourne—a function venue that occupies a historic warehouse once used for timber storage and distribution in Melbourne’s working port district. The site supplied hardwood materials that helped build much of the city during its industrial era.

After the timber business wound down, the site sat unused until four Melbourne entrepreneurs saw potential. Brothers Gideon Luber and Asher Luber, along with Adam McKenzie and Joshua Paneth, discovered the dilapidated furniture factory in 2016. Their vision: transform it into a flexible events space unlike anything else in Melbourne.

Melbourne function venue

The Timber Yard opened as an event venue in 2019, repurposing a mid-20th century industrial warehouse and timber fabrication factory. The venue spans 6,000 square metres of combined indoor and outdoor space, making it one of the larger standalone venues in the Port Melbourne area, which sits within the Fishermans Bend precinct amid warehouses and car dealerships, roughly 10 minutes from Melbourne’s CBD.

Dublin housing project

The Cork Street social housing project in Dublin, designed by O’Donnell + Tuomey, comprises 47 residential units across three to seven storeys. Cladding materials include concrete, brick, and timber. The project includes a community room and targets local housing need—this is an entirely separate initiative with no connection to the Melbourne venue.

Timber supply business

Various timber merchants and joinery suppliers across Ireland and the UK operate under names containing “Timber Yard” or “Timberyard.” These trade-focused businesses supply hardwood timbers including oak, ash, and mahogany to the joinery and kitchen trades. Their customer base and operations have nothing in common with Melbourne’s events industry.

How many people can the timber yard hold?

Capacity varies significantly depending on event type. The venue accommodates up to 2,000 people for standing parties and general gatherings, according to Time Out Melbourne. For music events with assigned seating or stage configurations, the capacity drops to approximately 1,500 attendees.

The venue divides into several distinct spaces. The Yard provides outdoor area, while The Warehouse, The Wood Store, and The Workshop offer indoor flexibility. Exact breakdowns between indoor and outdoor zones remain unclear from publicly available sources.

Venue capacity details

The venue’s scale allows for simultaneous uses that smaller venues cannot support. Corporate launches for major brands—including Ferrari, Lamborghini, Mecca, Chemist Warehouse, and Australia’s Big Four banks—have used the full footprint, according to The Music. The 9-metre-wide LED screen and extensive lighting rig enable productions that typically require dedicated concert halls.

Event suitability

Post-transformation, The Timber Yard positions itself for concerts, expos, fashion shows, and corporate galas. The blackout aesthetic—achieved through repainted black containers and motorised retractable drapes—creates controlled environments suitable for light-heavy productions. Food and drink festivals, including Wine & Cheese Fest, Festival of Cake, Botanica’s Spirit and Food Festival, and Mould: A Cheese Festival, have also used the space, per Beat Magazine.

What is Timberyard Port Melbourne known for?

The venue has built reputation across two distinct phases. Before the 2025 transformation, it was known as a gritty industrial space that hosted dance music events. The founders previously ran The Petting Zoo festival in the late 2010s, bringing credibility in that circuit. Acts like Ministry of Sound, Fred Again, RL Grime, and Remi Wolf performed there, per Southbank Local News.

The $3 million glow-up announced in October 2025 repositioned the venue as a premium technical facility. According to Noise11, $1.5 million of that budget went specifically to audio-visual infrastructure—100 moving spot and wash fixtures, d&b Audiotechnik sound systems, and the 9-metre LED screen. Full climate control and architectural lighting were added alongside.

Events and functions

The venue hosts markets, live music, and public events, according to its official past events listing. The transformation expanded its suitability for weddings, family fun days, and conferences, per 48H. The plug-and-play technical infrastructure added post-renovation means productions can deploy with minimal on-site build time.

$3 million glow-up

Founder Gideon Luber described the transformation in concrete terms: “We blacked out our warehouse, we painted our old containers from red to a full blackout of the room, really elevating the space.” The motorised retractable drapes allow the venue to shift between open-air festival mode and enclosed concert configuration.

Noise11 editorial noted: “There’s a new energy coursing through Melbourne’s live event scene, and it’s radiating from Port Melbourne’s iconic The Timber Yard.” The venue now claims status as one of Victoria’s most technically advanced venues post-upgrade, though this assessment comes with medium confidence given its subjectivity.

Who owns Timberyard Melbourne?

The four founders—Gideon Luber, Asher Luber, Adam McKenzie, and Joshua Paneth—are the publicly identified owners and operators. Gideon Luber has provided most of the public commentary on the venue’s direction and transformation.

What remains unclear is whether the venue operates under a formal corporate entity, whether additional investors hold stakes, and whether any of the founders have divested or brought in partners since the 2019 opening. Corporate registration details for the venue itself are not included in available coverage.

Ownership details

The founders’ prior experience centred on The Petting Zoo dance music festival, which ran in the late 2010s. That background shaped their approach to The Timber Yard—emphasising upcycling, recycling, and preserving industrial elements rather than stripping the space back to neutral, according to Beat Magazine.

Related entities

No subsidiary companies, sister venues, or franchise arrangements have been publicly disclosed. The Dublin housing project and Bristol timber suppliers share no ownership overlap. Searchers should verify they’re engaging with the Melbourne venue specifically by checking the address: 351 Plummer St, Port Melbourne.

What events and weddings are at the timber yard?

The event calendar spans corporate, music, food, and lifestyle programming. Music events have featured internationally recognised acts. Corporate clients include luxury automotive brands and major retailers. Food festivals draw weekend crowds seeking structured tasting experiences.

Specific 2026 event schedules remain unclear from publicly available sources. The official website lists past events including markets and live music, but forward calendars are sparse in the coverage examined.

The timber yard events

Event types include concerts, expos, fashion shows, and corporate galas. The full climate control and blackout capability allow events regardless of Melbourne’s variable weather. The outdoor Yard space accommodates festivals and larger public gatherings.

The timber yard wedding

The venue’s 6,000 square metres provide flexibility for wedding celebrations, though specific pricing, package details, and capacity limits for ceremonies versus receptions are not detailed in available coverage. Booking enquiries typically go through the venue directly.

Tickets and menu

Ticket availability and pricing structure depend on individual events. Food and beverage menus vary by event type—corporate functions may use bespoke catering, while public festivals typically feature rotating vendor lineups. Specific menu details are not published comprehensively online.

What people are saying

“We looked at the site and were like, ‘If we invest in this property, this could be a really cool events space.'” — Gideon Luber, Founder

“There’s a new energy coursing through Melbourne’s live event scene, and it’s radiating from Port Melbourne’s iconic The Timber Yard.” — Noise11 Editorial Team

“We blacked out our warehouse, we painted our old containers from red to a full blackout of the room, really elevating the space.” — Gideon Luber, Co-founder