Crown’s Barangaroo resort gunning for Chinese New Year opening
It will be encased in enough glass to cover eight soccer fields and top apartments are expected to command a $100 million price tag. Welcome to the first look inside Crown’s Sydney hotel resort tower in Barangaroo South. TAKE THE TOUR
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It’s the billion dollar view that Crown fought to preserve. And it’s not hard to see why, even from “just” the 42nd floor.
The Sunday Telegraph has been given exclusive access to the highest possible point, so far, of the $2.2 billion Crown Sydney Hotel Resort tower in Barangaroo South.
The company has revealed the footprint of its showpiece restaurant on the 24th floor and the swimming pools, tennis court, Crystal Lounge, gaming areas, and spectacular spiral staircase which are all under construction.
Builders of the controversial development have also responded to critics and shrugged off the “distraction” of a mega court case with the government — one that was resolved “once a few people moved around”.
When completed the six-star resort will reach 275m into the sky, making it the city’s second tallest building behind the 305m Sydney Tower Eye.
The only other building to come close to challenging its aerial dominance in the near future will be Mirvac’s 505 George St, which will be 5m shorter.
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“We are ahead of program which is unheard of in these major developments, sitting at a couple of weeks in front,” Crown Resorts design and construction vice president Greg Munday said.
“We are still sitting on Chinese New Year 2021 (opening around February 12). Our confidence level on that point is getting stronger.”
The crane is currently 52 floors high and the building will peak at 75 floors.
The Sunday Telegraph visited level 42, which like many floors will have four apartments on it.
“The apartments get bigger as you go up — even as the floor plate shrinks,” architect Paul Baker, director at WilkinsonEyre, said.
“All the way around the building are a series of terraces (recessed balconies).
“They can be accessed from the restaurants, bars and two gaming rooms. There is no back to this building.”
Each of the 82 apartments will sell for at least $9.5 million. James Packer purchased his pad in 2017 for a reported $60 million. Apartment prices are expected to top out at $100 million.
Display suites show bathrooms the size of double bedrooms and generous slabs of marble.
From the 42nd floor the Blue Mountains is visible to the west.
Apartments looking over the Harbour Bridge and the northern tip of the Opera House, however, are the most desired.
The Department of Planning is deciding on an application for some buyer-inspired minor modifications to internal walls in at least two apartments.
In 2018 Crown and Lendlease sued the government to protect the north east harbour views from a tower that was set to go on top of the new Barangaroo Metro station.
The case ultimately settled with both companies satisfied their spanning views would not be obstructed.
Lendlease’s towers one and two next door will be completed in 2023 and are still conducting basement works.
“That’s what we fought to keep,” Mr Mundey said from the 42nd floor, which can get wind speeds of up to 100km/h.
“We did not believe that we were being outside of what we thought was being reasonable.
“Our relationship with the government is very strong and once a few people moved around … it’s all good now.”
The building will have 52,000sq m of glass, which is the equivalent of eight soccer fields.
There will be 225,000 tonnes of concrete used (the equivalent of 12,500 buses).
There are 1040 workers on site and when completed it will provide 2800 direct and indirect jobs.
The public can access seven main restaurants, the entire ground floor area, numerous bars and the observation deck on level 66.
VIP table gambling designed to attract mega rich Chinese gamblers comprises 10 per cent of the building’s footprint, however, the majority of the resort’s long term profit will come from this.
The whole point is it’s not for the general public,” Mr Mundey said.
“Some of the negative comments we have had from the City of Sydney have inferred that we are going to try and get pokies. We have no intention of getting pokies.
“It is not to try and get two cents off your grandmother.”