$1bn office and retail hub in Darling Harbour pipeline
A consortium of property powerhouses including GPT, Brookfield and AMP has lodged a development application for a $1 billion high-rise office and retail precinct at Sydney’s Darling Harbour in what would be the city’s next major waterfront transformation project after Barangaroo.
The co-owners of the Darling Park office and entertainment area — GPT Wholesale Office Fund, Brookfield and AMP Capital Wholesale Office Fund — aim to link Sydney’s CBD to Darling Harbour through a new elevated public space that spans more than one hectare, according to their stage one DA.
Along with a premier retail, cafe and dining precinct, the project was set to revitalise Cockle Bay as part of the transformation under way in the area, consortium representative Matthew Faddy says.
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“We have been consulting with the local community, businesses and the general public on the design for the new precinct,” he says.
“The development approval process will give the owners more opportunity to match the details of that design with public expectations for Cockle Bay.”
The proposed development includes up to 15,000sqm of retail space and a commercial tower with up to 70,000sqm of premium grade space and a height of up to 235m.
The Darling Park redevelopment is one of several projects in Darling Harbour and Cockle Bay, where property giants such as Grocon, M&L Hospitality, Lend Lease and Mirvac are separately working on large-scale developments.
Mirvac recently submitted an application to redevelop the Harbourside Shopping Centre. Its $400 million transformation plan includes demolishing the existing centre and building a four-level modern retail centre with a 166m tall apartment tower above it.
