Charter Hall gets green light for $2b Chifley Square project
Charter Hall will set the Sydney skyline alight with its new tower at Chifley Square in the northern end of the city, offering high-end energy-efficient accommodation that it is confident will be in demand as more workers head back to the office.
The proposed 37-storey tower on Monday night was given official endorsement from City of Sydney, moving the group a step closer to commencing work on the next stage of its $2 billion project at 2 Chifley Square in Sydney.
It will sit adjacent to the existing Chifley North tower, offering more than 64,000 square metres of premium-grade office. Investment house UBS and Charter Hall have already committed to some space.
Charter Hall office chief executive Carmel Hourigan called the endorsement from the City of Sydney a “significant milestone”, adding it reinforces Sydney’s reputation as an “innovative and leading global city”.
“This decision reflects confidence in Charter Hall’s vision for the Chifley Precinct to encourage the return to workplaces where collaboration, mutual success and our wellbeing thrives,” Hourigan said.
“The flight-to-quality, as demonstrated in our pre-commitment leases, is how high-performance businesses are attracting and maintaining the highest-calibre professionals and ultimately driving success.”
In the latest data from the Property Council of Australia, office occupancy for the month of July has remained above 50 per cent, but train disruptions and the flu season saw a slight dip in Sydney.
Property Council of Australia’s NSW executive director Luke Achterstraat said the first decline this year was disappointing but unsurprising, given work from home directives from businesses due to recent Omicron waves, coupled with flu season.
“This year there has been an encouraging eight-fold increase from 7 per cent occupancy in January to 55 per cent in May, with now a small decline due to surrounding pressures,” Achterstraat said.
Charter Hall head of development – office, Mark Stante, said the Chifley development strongly aligns with NSW government and City of Sydney employment and sustainability objectives, contributing to the city’s target for more than100,000 additional jobs.
Upon completion, the tower will boast the highest green-star credentials, including electrifying the entire Chifley precinct, enabling it to operate entirely from renewable energy. Charter Hall is also targeting Climate Active carbon-neutral certification for the new building.
The Charter Hall Prime Office Fund (CPOF) originally purchased the 2 Chifley Square precinct freehold for $98.5 million in 2018 and is also one of the leasehold owners. The wholesale fund also owns the leasehold interest in the adjoining Gresham Building at 167 Macquarie Street.
The director of city planning, development and transport, Graham Jahn, said the approval from City of Sydney follows community consultation and Gateway determination, granted by NSW Government in February.
He called the project a “positive” for the CBD, adding that it was a good response to the Central Sydney Planning Strategy, in terms of energy and employment as well as contributing to post COVID-19 stimulus.
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