Discussing the mixed-use project site behind them on City Hill are (from left) City Renewal Authority CEO Craig Gillman, Chief Minister Andrew Barr, Capital Property Group CEO Stephen Byron and group head of property Richard Snow. Photo: Ian Bushnell.
The Commonwealth needs to commit to the development of the Canberra CBD and site more of its departments and agencies there in new buildings, according to the company that is lining up to build its fourth project around City Hill.
Capital Property Group CEO Stephen Byron was speaking this morning (20 January) on City Hill after the announcement the company had invested $66 million in the purchase of an almost-two-hectare block of land it will develop into a mixed-use precinct that will become home to about 1000 residents and 1200 workers.
Mr Byron said the national capital’s CBD needed to be a pre-eminent city centre and the Commonwealth needed to play a role.
“The Commonwealth needs to decide if it will stay in the old and unenvironmental buildings that are very inefficient to run and not very good-quality workplaces, and they also need to decide if they’re going to commit to the CBD of Canberra and be part of building that,” he said.
Capital Property Group is building an office tower on Vernon Circle next to its award-winning Constitution Place precinct. It will also be building offices on the landmark law courts carpark and one on this block of land on the former clover leaf but which will be a gateway site on the soon-to-be-completed corner of London Circuit and Commonwealth Avenue.
It has Commonwealth tenants in its sights but the Federal Government is proving hard to pin down, and the coming election will only exacerbate the indecision.
An artist’s aerial overview of the planned precinct and its six buildings. Image: City Renewal Authority.
Much of the Commonwealth’s gaze appears to be across the lake where a clutch of departments and agencies will move into new offices now under construction, something that concerns Mr Byron.
“You can’t have too many more departments duck over to Barton and that doesn’t help invigorate the CBD of Canberra,” he said.
The group has faced its own critics over the years for its Brindabella Park precinct taking jobs out of Civic but the Snow family has a long-held interest in the CBD, with Terry Snow proposing a major redevelopment of City Hill in his 2005 Living City proposal, which the Labor Stanhope government rejected.
But Mr Byron, who happened to be clutching a copy of Living City, said the group’s long-term commitment to the CBD was not about a personal legacy or stamp on the city but a legacy that helped build the city and support events, a vibrancy for visitors and the government’s infrastructure pipeline, such as light rail.
“I hope we invigorate it more than anything else, the stamp will be for others to judge, but if we start with seeking design excellence, we start with a massive commitment to environmental sustainability, the ability to operate the precincts in a carbon-neutral fashion, and we get the people pieces right, then certainly it’ll be the start of a stamp on the city,” he said.
A major goal of this precinct – which will contain four apartment towers, an office building and high-end hotel set around a central park – will be to link the CBD to Lake Burley Griffin and Acton Waterfront.
Chief Minister Andrew Barr said the government had been progressively releasing land and funding public works to achieve that longer-term vision.
Mr Barr said the proposal was an important next step for not only housing supply, but new commercial accommodation, including a new CBD hotel to support the expected growth in tourism.
An artist’s impression of a view of the precinct and office tower from London Circuit. Image: City Renewal Authority.
Mr Byron said the 500 units would include a range of sizes, from one to three beds, and offer spectacular views.
He said the location demanded a high-quality development with the best design that injected more residents into the CBD and combined a mix of uses.
The buildings would have a 7-star NABERS energy-efficiency rating and the precinct was being positioned for a Green Star rating.
Mr Byron said it was crucial to get this gateway site right because Canberrans would be looking at it for decades to come.
The group had been talking about the project with ACT Government agencies and the National Capital Authority, particularly about building heights and how the tallest towers would look from the other side of the lake from Parliament House.
City Renewal Authority CEO Craig Gillman said Capital Property Group won the competitive tender for “this critical site” because it ticked all the boxes.
This included diverse and quality designs, the public realm and new city park and how these would “look, feel and operate and attract people”, as well as connectivity to both the light rail stops and the future Acton Waterfront neighbourhood.
Mr Gillman said the $66m result was good value for the ACT ratepayers and community.
Subject to approvals, construction could begin as soon as 2026, with completion in stages expected between 2028 and 2034.
Loading ...
