Optus, Macquarie Park: New visitor, employee hub receives green light

A state of the art visitor and employee hub is one step closer to being built at Optus’s Sydney headquarters as the telco continues to grapple with the fallout of last month’s massive data breach.

Telco giant Optus has been given the green light to build a multimillion-dollar revamp of its Sydney headquarters as the company continues to grapple with the fallout of last month’s data breach.

The Optus headquarters at Macquarie Park could become home to a new hi-tech building called the ‘O Pavilion’ after plans for the development were approved by Ryde Council’s planning panel on Friday.

The $12.6 million development would cater for Optus employees and visitors to the site who could use facilities for “collaboration and shared working practices”.

The ‘O Pavilion’ would also have various facilities for employees including new meeting areas, cafes, a gymnasium and designated areas for “staff wellbeing” programs.

Plans for the development state the project was aimed at creating an “enhanced welcome experience” for visitors and encouraging employees to re-engage with the office environment after two years of working from home.

A concept plan of the development.

The Optus ''O Pavilion'' was approved on Friday

“The O-Pavilion concept will create a reimagined ‘front door’ to the Optus campus, bringing people, landscape, work, and technology together in a vibrant living space that represents the Optus brand,” the company’s plans stated.

“The new multifunctional space that will be used for a myriad of uses, including health and wellbeing programs.”

A concept plan of the development.

An architectural plan of the pavilion.

The approval of the plans come as the telco remains in damage control in the wake of last month’s data breach which exposed customer details including email addresses, passport numbers and drivers licence details.

Optus says it is continuing to work with the Australian Federal Police to track down those responsible for the cyber attack.

A company spokeswoman declined to say whether the financial fallout from the data breach would impact the development of the ‘O Pavilion’.

“We have no further update at this time,” she said in a statement.

Optus’s plans for the development show the facility would include breakout spaces for mental health wellbeing programs, public walkways, landscaping works and recreation areas.

Plans state the development has been designed as a “space for people to engage, innovate and connect with each other and with nature and indigenous heritage”.

The Optus headquarters at Lyonpark Rd is one of the largest employers in northern Sydney and spans 7ha with six interconnected buildings.

Ryde Council’s planning panel – in approving the development – found the project was permissible under the site’s zoning and would meet the day to day needs of staff and visitors.

Plans show 33 trees will be removed to make way for the development which will be replanted by 66 native species.