A proposal for twin towers in Parrmatta's CBD, designed by SJB in collaboration with Land and Form, is currently on exhibition within the NSW government's major projects planning portal.
Sited on a vacant lot opposite Parramatta's station and bus interchange at 2 Fitzwilliam Street, the $400 million mixed-use project seeks to deliver high-rise rental housing atop a hotel podium with ground-floor retail.
After securing first-stage development consent in April last year, Urban Property Group selected SJB's initial design from a design excellence competition between three competitors. At the time, the proposal included one apartment tower and one office tower above an office podium.
Having been selected for the NSW government's State Significant Rezoning Program - an initiative launched in September 2024 to fast-track the delivery of housing to contribute to the National Housing Accord target - the scheme was revised with the replacement of the original office component with residential accommodation and a hotel.
Across two towers reaching 48-storeys and 40-storeys high, the current project includes more than 700 build-to-rent apartments. The podium, which accommodates a 217-room hotel and ground-floor retail dining spaces, is articulated with a diagonal, cross-block pedestrian link that echoes the break in the towers above and continues the axis of the train station entrance opposite. A five-storey basement for car parking is located below.
SJB's website notes, "Our proposal for 2 Fitzwilliam Street introduces a critical piece of urban fabric to Parramatta's fast-changing CBD, facilitating intuitive connections and public respite with a strong sense of belonging and resilience."
According to the firm, the design for "the podium responds to natural movement paths through the public domain - people, wind and water - creating an organic form that guides people intuitively, scales to human proportions and adapts to the natural topography of the site."
The current state significant development application can be viewed online.
