Ritz-Carlton Tower at The Star adds to Darling Harbour's rejuvenation
Darling Harbour’s rejuvenation continues apace with this week’s news that the luxury hotel brand Ritz-Carlton will return to Sydney for the first time in 18 years. The six-star hotel will offer 220 rooms situated within the top half of a distinctive 61-storey tower to be built at the north-eastern corner of The Star in Pyrmont.
The hotel is poised to capture a slice of surging overseas visitor numbers, as well as taking advantage of its prominent harbour-side position, and proximity to both the Sydney CBD and Darling Harbour Convention, Exhibition and entertainment venues.
The tower design adopts a memorable form as it rises to its full height of 231 metres, branching into two distinct, interlocked volumes as it subtly twists to maximise and ensure the best harbour and CBD vistas.
Given its relative isolation, its distinctive form will create a landmark architectural statement on Sydney’s skyline , providing a bookmark to Barangaroo’s towers on the opposite shore, framing the entrance to Darling Harbour from ferries and other vessels on the harbour.
Beneath the hotel, the bottom half of the tower will acommodate around 200 apartments as well as a five-storey neighbourhood centre. This will contain a social enterprise space, reading room, function space, collaboration hub, and rooftop terrace - useful additions to community infrastructure in the area.
As part of the development, the Pirrama Rd podium of The Star will be refurbished, adding a rooftop pool and terrace, public restaurants, two gyms, and a spa & wellness centre.
Fifteen food outlets will cluster around the path connecting the hotel tower to the rooftop social and leisure space, forming a ‘restaurant avenue’. No additional gambling floor space is included in the development.
The project comes amid a spate of new developments entering the pipeline to cater to the rapidly growing visitor market. In the last year alone, visitor numbers in Sydney have increased by 5% to 14 million, 4.3 million of which were from overseas.
According to Destination NSW, visitors to the state have collectively injected $16.85 billion into the NSW economy.
The $500 million project is a joint venture between the Star Entertainment Group and Hong Kong-based Chow Tai Fook and Far East Consortium and will generate 1000 jobs during construction and a further 500 jobs once operational.
The design team is led by architects FJMT who are also responsible for a number of prominent projects in the area, including the new Sofitel at the International Convention Centre.
The new hotel and its dramatic tower will add a new layer to the Darling Harbour precinct, consolidating the area as a premier social and business destination.
Far East Consortium is also introducing the Ritz-Carlton brand in Perth and Melbourne via developments at Elizabeth Quay and West Side Place. Both projects are currently under construction with Probuild at the helm, and architecture by Cottee Parker.
