- Both high rises in the Sapphire by the Gardens development in Melbourne have topped out
- The structures reached their highest points standing at 232 and 220 metres above street level
- The mixed use precinct will offer residential apartments and hotel accommodation
Construction company Multiplex has reached a building milestone on SP Setia’s Sapphire by the Gardens dual tower development with both high-rises ‘topping out’.
The new additions to the Melbourne skyline reached their highest points standing at 232 and 220 metres above street level respectively. The project includes a 62-level
5-star flagship Shangri-La Hotel along with a 60-level residential tower housing 325 luxury apartments.
SP Setia President and CEO Datuk Choong Kai Wai is pleased with the milestone, with the end now in sight for the project which first broke ground in late 2018.
“The completion of Sapphire by the Gardens and the Shangri-La will mark our fifth significant development within Melbourne.”
Datuk Choong Kai Wai, SP Setia President & CEO
“We are thrilled to see this iconic development come to life and stimulate thousands of local jobs during and after construction,” he said.
The high rises on the corner of Exhibition and La Trobe Streets will be connected by a Sky Lounge two-thirds of the way up the towers. The development is designed by Fender Katsalidis in collaboration with Cox Architecture.
The 500-room Hotel will feature a striking façade embellished with champagne gold fins. The facility will also deliver the largest ballroom space in Melbourne’s CBD with elegant six-metre-high ceilings.
Multiplex Regional Managing Director Graham Cottam has expressed his delight with the milestone, describing it as a “…testament to the collaboration and determination of our team and subcontractors.”
“Constructing two towers simultaneously takes exceptional planning and management, especially when facing construction and engineering complexities like the iconic sky bridge, 46-storeys in the air.”
Graham Cottam, Multiplex Regional Managing Director
At its peak, the project required more than 400 workers daily according to Multiplex. The construction has calculated over 2 million hours worked to date.
Multiplex was faced with construction challenges associated with the sky bridge design. The construction team resolved to create a temporary cantilevered deck beneath the structure to enable safe working access.
Upon completion, the precinct is forecast to have generated over 1,000 jobs including some ongoing roles within the Hotel.
The first residents are expected to move into apartments in October 2022 while the final completion of the precinct is on track for early in 2023. The Hotel expects to welcome its first guests in 2024.
