Unique Darling Square concept on market for $70m
Development major Lendlease is selling the uniquely configured The Exchange complex planned for Sydney’s Darling Square, with hopes of fetching about $70 million.
The sale, which will be a test of demand for innovatively designed mixed use assets, is part of the company’s strategy to develop then dispose of select buildings in its major urban precincts.
It has already sold down other commercial elements of the project and at nearby Barangaroo South recently sold an under-construction complex that will be occupied by WeWork for about $250 million.
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CBRE’s James Parry, Sharon Yang and Nick Willis are marketing The Exchange building, with an eclectic mix of buyers also tipped to chase the property, which is described as a “spiralling light-filled hive”.
Designed by Japanese architecture firm Kengo Kuma and Associates, The Exchange is a seven-storey community and retail building with unusual circular floor plates and a stunning facade wrapped in almost 20 kilometres of sustainably sourced timber.
The building will include a ground floor cafe with famed Chinese restaurant Golden Century to anchor the mezzanine level, extending beyond its Sussex St and Pyrmont venues.
The building’s community aspects include a two level City of Sydney library that will open next year and a childcare facility on levels three and four to be leased to Commonwealth Bank. A level five rooftop space will sport views of the Sydney CBD skyline, the Chinese Garden of Friendship and Darling Harbour.
The overall Darling Square precinct will include about 1500 residential units, 26,000sqm of office space, 12,000sqm of retail, community and leisure uses, a 1300 bed student complex and the luxury Sofitel hotel.
Lendlease’s managing director, urban regeneration, John Burton calls the building the “centrepiece” of Darling Square, which sits in the heart of the area’s overall $3.4 billion redevelopment. “The Exchange’s bold design sets it apart and marks it as a distinctive addition to Sydney’s skyline,” he says.
Parry also predicts The Exchange will become an important part of the city’s fabric and highlights its unique architectural form.
This article originally appeared on www.theaustralian.com.au/property.
