Meriton proposes two towers

Heavyweight apartment developer, Meriton, is boosting its profile in Parramatta with a proposal to build two, 13-storey towers on its Meriton Apartments Parramatta property adjacent to the corporate precinct of the CBD.

This is in addition to the twin tower mixed-use complex on the former site of the David Jones store, which is currently being demolished, in the restaurant precinct, at 330 Church Street.

The latest proposal includes the demolition of two of the five buildings on the Meriton Apartments site, on the north-east corner of George and Charles streets, for the construction of 146 apartments, a 56-place child care centre and retail tenancies at an estimated cost of construction is $50 million

The application, prepared by Meriton Property Services Pty Ltd and Karimbla Construction Services (NSW) Pty, will be determined by the Western Sydney Joint Regional Planning Panel.

The company has approval for the construction of a 22-storey tower containing 170 serviced apartments, and a 32-storey tower containing 211 residential apartments, on the David jones property, representing a capital investment of $150 million.

Since that approval in February 2013, Meriton has sought to increase the towers to 27 and 48 towers respectively, adding 159 residential apartments and 96 serviced apartments

This request is currently being assessed by the department of Planning & Infrastructure.

Elsewhere, Krikis Tayler Architects has lodged a DA for the demolition and construction of a mixed use development, at 2-6 River road West, Parramatta.

The project, on a former light industrial site, includes two 11-storey buildings and one 12-storey building containing a total of 287 units. The estimated cost of work is $82.5 million

Major apartment towers under construction or approved include 770 units, at 2 Morton Street, 500 units, at 57-83 Church Street, 381 units, at 330 Church Street and 265 units, at 109-113 George Street.

A Parramatta City Council report identified a total of 4850 apartments had been approved in the period 2007-2013.  

$200 million investment in CBD

Parramatta City Council has received two development applications for a $35.2 million expansion and rejuvenation of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia’s office tower in the corporate precinct of the CBD.

The tower at 150 George Street, on the north-west corner of George and Charles streets includes a 22-level tower, of 20,496 square metres and a six-level car park accommodating 483 vehicles.

The major proposal of $25.4 million includes the extension of levels 8 to 10 by means of the construction of a 3-level building in the air space over the parking station which will lose 37 parking spaces.

The new 3582-square-metre building, which is structurally independent of the tower, will be joined to it by an atrium.

“The proposal will create additional employment opportunities in an area which is experiencing rapid transformation in terms of commercial character,” according to the Mckenzie Group which prepared the statement of environmental effects report

The second proposal seeks to renew the façade and the extension and reconfiguration of the lobby area of the 22-storey tower, which includes a café for use by staff and the public, at a cost of $9.8 million.

The George and Charles streets intersection and the immediate vicinity are becoming a hub of activity on eastern edge of the CBD.

In the order of 5000 people work locally, excluding construction workers.

Three major projects – all residential towers, one of which is under construction – are also located in the area, which includes residential units, serviced apartments, cafes, restaurants, a gym and commercial and professional space.

A 19-storey tower comprising 264 apartments is under construction, at 109-113 George Street.

An archaeological dig is underway on a vacant site, at 184-188 George Street, for a 12-storey building comprising 84 apartments.

Parramatta City Council has received a DA for two, 13-storey towers, comprising 146 additional apartments in the Meriton Serviced Apartments complex, at 180 George street, opposite the Commonwealth Bank’s proposal.

These four projects represent approximately $200 million in construction costs.

An application was approved in October 2011 for the redevelopment of the Cumberland Newspapers property, which includes a commercial and residential building, at 142 Macquarie Street, and a commercial building facing George Street, at an anticipated cost of $51.9 million.