Northern Sydney apartment complex ‘at threat of collapse’

Four blocks of 900 new apartments in Macquarie Park are at risk of collapsing due to “serious damage” to the concrete in the basement, the state’s building authority says.

Building Commission NSW issued urgent work rectification orders to developer Greenland over the site at 23 Halifax Street at Lachlan’s Line at Macquarie Park.

The development at Macquarie Park. Credit: Brook Mitchell

In an audit of the site, the agency reported “serious damage and spalling of the concrete slab at the joint locations in basements and the ground floor”.

Spalling is the deterioration of steel-reinforced concrete and can appear as rust or cracks in the concrete. The concrete at the base of the building was caused by defective workmanship, wrote Matt Press, the acting assistant building commissioner, in his published orders.

“This is a defect in a building product or building element that causes or is likely to cause the basement slab to fail, namely, to fracture and collapse, leading to the destruction of the building or any part, or the threat of collapse of the building or any part,” he wrote.

The reported defect would likely mean the concrete slab would be unable “to withstand the carpark and ground floor loads”.

Unit owner Nina Bishop was just finishing off moving into the Macquarie Park apartment complex on Wednesday, Credit: Nine News

However, the Building Commission said in a statement on Wednesday there was no danger to residents. The defects, it said, related to “the long-term durability of the basement levels of the building only, not to any units within the complex”.

“The Building Commission will continue to work with the developer to ensure compliance with the order and is working to rebuild trust and capability in the construction sector,” it said.

Nina Bishop, who was moving her final boxes into the complex on Wednesday, said she had not been told anything about the defects despite carefully reading through strata reports before recently buying a level-six unit.

“It’s nerve-racking wondering what’s going on. It’s out of the blue,” she said.

Her 25-year-old son and first-home buyer recently purchased a level-nine unit.

The apartment blocks are billed as luxury living by developer Greenland.Credit: Greenland

The published orders reveal a draft copy of the order was first issued to Greenland – as well as the local council, owners’ corporation, the certifier and the Office of the Registrar General – in October 2023.

Greenland submitted a response to the Building Commission on December 1 with scanning and structural reports of the building.

The developer requested, according to Press in the orders, “that the department exercise discretion to not issue the order”.

But the acting assistant building commissioner disagreed, noting that the developer did not dispute the defect.

“I have considered all of the circumstances. I accept the order requires specified actions that are likely to be costly.

“However, the cost to the developer must be balanced against the benefit to the occupiers,” he said.

Under the orders, the developer will be required to ensure the concrete slabs are scanned within two months, and that an engineering report about the structural adequacy of the joints and a plan to fix the defects is submitted within four months. The work to repair the defects will have to be completed within eight months of the orders, which were issued on Monday.

A spokesperson for Fair Trading Minister Anoulack Chanthivong said the strong advice from the building commission was that the defects did not pose a threat to safety, but were serious and must be repaired to avoid long-term risk.

“Building Commission NSW is doing what we set it up to do, catching defects early and forcing builders to pay to rectify their own unsatisfactory work,” he said.

Ryde’s Liberal Mayor Sarkis Yedelian said it was “very concerning news”, and he would ensure the council investigates the matter and supports the impacted residents as much as possible.

Jason Johnson rents an apartment in the Macquarie Park complex.Credit: Rhett Wyman

“It is another reason why we have strong reservations about the government’s decision to keep cutting corners with their 8000 Macquarie Park overdevelopment plan,” he said.

Jason Johnson, who has lived in the building since it was opened, had not heard the news of the order either. As a builder, he was not worried that the building would collapse overnight but said the building management would need to do some work to fix it up.

Shweta, a local who did not want her last name used to protect her privacy, was waiting at the entrance to the building to inspect a one-bedroom unit for $650 a week. “I’m shocked,” she said when she was shown the news.

She has several colleagues that live in the building because of its proximity to work and the city. “[The location is] so tempting. You have all the shops and cafes and you can get the bus. But it’s really scary. I’m just worried about the students and a lot of people coming from other countries. What about them?”

Greenland, the Fortune 500-listed developer founded in Shanghai, established its Australian arm in 2013 and has offices in Sydney. It says it is the fastest-growing company in China.

The company has completed at least five apartment buildings in Sydney: the Greenland Centre on Bathurst Street in the Sydney CBD; the luxury Omnia building at Potts Point; Leichhardt Green; Lucent North Sydney and this Macquarie Park development.

It is involved in the construction of Park Sydney, a residential block in Erskineville, according to its website. The commission has not issued any orders on these sites.

The Macquarie Park apartments are billed as luxury living opportunities, with one, two and three-bedroom units on offer priced around $1 million. They are “designed without compromise”, the building’s website boasts.

They feature “unrivalled resort-style facilities and handy proximity to transport, with the North Ryde and Macquarie Park train stations on your doorstep, as well as the Epping Road bus corridor and the M2 motorway”.

The orders come just one day after a slew of orders for seven more apartment blocks in Sydney were issued by the commission.

Greenland has been contacted for comment.

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