Ritz-Carlton plans in tatters as $500m Sydney hotel rejected
The Star Entertainment Group’s long-held plans to develop a glittering six-star, $500 million Ritz Carlton-branded tower in Sydney were in tatters last week after the NSW government summarily rejected the gaming company’s ambitious plans.
But The Star’s senior executives, reeling from the rejection, have privately vowed to fight the decision given similar planning department refusals have been overturned, including the 2017 Rye Park Wind Farm project, which was initially rejected but later won approval.
“We’re extremely disappointed with the recommendation,” a Star spokesman told The Australian.
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The gaming company is likely to fight the government’s decision with The Star spokesman adding that it would “take time to review the report and the department’s position, and consider the avenues and other opportunities available to us”.
“Sydney needs new and refreshed tourism infrastructure or risk losing international visitors to other states, other countries,” he said.
“We want to spend half a billion dollars on helping NSW increase its appeal to the inbound visitor market.”
All up, The Star had proposed a 230-metre tower including a hotel which could have rivalled the $2.2bn mixed casino, apartment and hotel tower undertaken by billionaire James Packer’s Crown Resorts at nearby Barangaroo.
The proposed Ritz-Carlton tower at The Star Sydney. Picture: Supplied
But the Planning Department had other ideas, saying it did not accept The Star’s justification that the proposed tower sat within a “global waterfront precinct”.
“This concept has not been subject to any strategic planning process or community consultation and does not form part of any existing or emerging government planning direction,” the department said.
“The proponent’s justification for a tower also fails to adequately respond to the local character of Pyrmont.
“Pyrmont is characterised by an established low- to medium-scale character while supporting reasonably high levels of density,” the department said.
A department spokesman said it had made a thorough and rigorous assessment of the proposal and found on balance the public impacts outweighed the benefits.
“The assessment carefully considered issues raised in submissions, the proponent’s response to these issues and the expert advice of the department’s independent design adviser,” the department spokesman said.
Meanwhile, The Star spokesman said its development involved no additional gaming facilities and would have a multi-level community centre, as well as the six-star hotel brand and extensive food and beverage outlets.
The gaming company has been through a drawn-out planning and design process complicated by the possibility of a metro station coming to the area.
“Since first applying for the environmental assessment requirements four years ago, we have committed ourselves to design excellence and comprehensive community consultation,” the spokesman said.
The department received 83 objections from the public.
The Star said the NSW government architect of the time, Peter Poulet, was part of its design excellence panel, and the acclaimed architect Richard Francis-Jones won the design excellence competition.
Some industry players also cast doubt on the project’s commerciality saying The Star would not have got a reasonable return on the hotel project.
One property executive said casino hotels had outstanding occupancy but The Star had proposed spending too much on the 61-storey hotel for its location.
This article originally appeared on www.theaustralian.com.au/property.
