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Lendlease has started the process to construct a new $1.5 billion tower at Circular Quay, Sydney, with the appointment of architects Foster + Partners.
It will be part of the multibillion-dollar upgrade of the precinct, which includes the $1 billion Wanda hotel and apartment development of the former Gold Fields House and AMP Capital's $1 billion Quay Quarter Sydney project at its 50 Bridge Street tower and 33 Alfred Street site.
AMP Capital recently sold all three of the luxury Loftus Lane buildings, part of the Quay Quarter Sydney precinct, in just over two hours.
Lendlease's Circular Quay precinct on George and Pitt streets includes what could become Sydney's tallest office tower with a structure up to 263 metres high. It also comprises a low-rise community building, a large public plaza fronting George Street and a secondary plaza on Rugby Place.
The site will be criss-crossed at different levels by a network of pedestrian laneways, which will be lined with shops, cafes and bars.
In December 2016, Lendlease confirmed Ping An Real Estate and Mitsubishi Estate Asia as development partners.
Circular Quay Tower is part of the broader Circular Quay renewal project, with significant public and private investment into infrastructure and development, including Sydney Light Rail on George Street, upgrades to Circular Quay ferry terminal and other commercial projects.
Within the next few years, there will be a walkway from the southern end of Darling Harbour, past Barangaroo, across Circular Quay to the Botanical Gardens.
Mark Menhinnitt, the managing director of urban regeneration at Lendlease, said Lendlease was "impressed by Foster + Partners' refined scheme that recognised the need for strong integration and activation of the ground plane, while ensuring the tower is a spectacular landmark worthy of its iconic location".
"Circular Quay Tower, to be located on a new internationally recognised address, will provide a dynamic workplace and environment for Sydney's future generation of office occupiers," Mr Menhinnitt said.
"Fronting the reinvigorated city spine of George Street with two new plazas, workers and visitors will be welcomed to an abundance of retail, dining and entertainment, and arts and culture."
Foster + Partners have designed some of the world's most notable buildings including the Hearst Tower in New York, "The Gherkin" in London and Deutsche Bank Place in Sydney.
The senior executive partner of Foster + Partners, Gerard Evenden, said the tower would be the centrepiece of an urban regeneration precinct that would reshape the northern end of the CBD.
Local architectural firm Stewart Hollenstein has been selected to remodel the Jacksons on George site that will transform the Sydney institution.
