MELBOURNE, Australia — Global tech giant Amazon will be the anchor tenant of a new AUD 1.5 billion ($1.16 billion) office tower in central Melbourne.
The United States-based company will lay down fresh roots at Charter Hall’s new office development on Collins Street once it is completed.
The first tower at 555 Collins Street is expected to accommodate about 4,500 workers, and Stage 1 construction will create more than 1,500 construction jobs.
Approval for the two-tower project was fast-tracked last May by a state government task force established to revitalize the local economy during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Treasurer Tim Pallas, Melbourne Lord Mayor Sally Capp, and project partners on April 21 turned the first sod of what will become 84,000 square meters of space for offices and more than 2,300 sqm for retail.
“This investment will contribute billions of dollars to the Victorian tech economy in the next 10 years, cementing our position as the innovation state,” Pallas said.
With lockdown leaving Melbourne’s Central Business District largely deserted in 2020, Amazon Web Services Australia and New Zealand managing director Adam Beavis claimed the company was excited to be part of the city’s reinvigoration.
“Melbourne has a rich community of innovators, and we are looking forward to bringing Amazon’s growing local workforce to 555 Collins Street, so we can continue to invent and innovate on behalf of customers,” Beavis said.
Pallas claims that city-shaping projects like 555 Collins Street are key to the Melbourne Central Business District’s future as a vibrant, economic hub. The practical completion of Stage 1 of 555 Collins Street is scheduled for early 2023.
“This is significant for Melbourne and incredible news for jobs and our highly skilled workforce,” Pallas said.
Mayor Capp tweeted about the project and claims it is a clear sign of confidence in the city’s economic future. “Shovels are in the ground at 555 Collins Street as work starts on a new AUD 1.5 billion ($1.16 billion) retail and office precinct. The project will create 1,500 jobs, and the precinct will accommodate 7,500 office workers — a clear sign of confidence in our city’s economic future,” read the tweet.
Accommodating up to 7,500 Central Business District workers, the design of the two buildings actively responds to the new Covid-19 operating environment, with next-generation Smart Building technology that monitors air quality and touchless amenities to support enhanced health, hygiene, and wellness.
It further expands Amazon’s footprint in Victoria after the online behemoth last year announced it would open a second distribution center at Ravenhall in Melbourne’s west by late 2021.
(Edited by Vaibhav Vishwanath Pawar and Pallavi Mehra. Map by Urvashi Makwana)
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