Darlinghurst Road and Victoria Street
Redefining a street corner.
The proposal is for a mixed-use development at the former Crest Hotel, a landmark site located at the junction of Victoria Street and Darlinghurst Road at the gateway of the iconic Kings Cross entertainment precinct within Potts Point.
The project was for the adaptive reuse of the 1960s hotel building and its conversion to residential apartments with commercial premises at ground and first floor. SJB planning were engaged to assist the client in navigating the complex planning process which consisted of Stage 1 development application (DA), competitive design process, Stage 2 DA and subsequent Section 96 modifications.
A stage 1 DA was submitted to the City of Sydney for an enlarged building footprint and conversion of the hotel accommodation to residential apartments. As the building exceeded 55m in height, the Stage 1 approval required that a competitive design process be conducted prior to lodgement of a Stage 2 DA.
SJB planning navigated the competitive design process which involved four (4) architectural firms and was awarded to Durbach Block Jaggers (DBJ) in December 2014. Following completion of the design process, SJB Planning coordinated the preparation and submission of the Stage 2 DA, which was approved by the Central Sydney Planning Committee on 10 September 2015. The approval provided for 10% FSR bonus, 131 apartments, a new commercial offering at ground and first floor, including a supermarket and associated parking within the existing building basement. As the project involved the adaptive reuse of an existing 1960 building, there were many challenges that required resolution and negotiation with the City of Sydney.
