Construction has begun in Sydney’s Haymarket district on a 33-storey “pencil tower” whose street-facing facade will be just 6.4 metres wide. Preparatory work at the Pitt Street site formally started this spring, and initial construction activity has now begun. Once complete, the tower is expected to become Sydney’s narrowest high-rise and one of the world’s most slender skyscrapers, with a 173-room hotel and only two passenger lifts serving the entire building.
Key Takeaways: The tower will rise 33 storeys on a site of about 345 square metres, with a facade just 6.4 metres wide. It will house a 173-room hotel and rely on only two passenger lifts. Initial construction has started after several years of design work and approvals for the Pitt Street project.
The project illustrates the extreme density pressures in central Sydney, where land is expensive and available plots are tightly constrained. Planning and approvals for the unusually narrow site took several years, and the application for construction consent was prepared by Mecone, a consultancy providing urban planning services. Documents describe the scheme as a 33-storey “pencil tower”; four architecture practices were invited to develop concepts before Durbach Block Jaggers was selected.
In 2021, the Durbach Block Jaggers design was approved. Architect Neil Durbach explained how the building would be adapted to such a narrow plot, saying each hotel room would be extremely compact, almost like a train compartment. He argued that the small rooms would be offset by generous shared spaces: a swimming pool is planned for the top floor, while a larger common area will be provided at the lower level of the building.
The proposal has drawn mixed reactions from local residents and other observers. Some praise the architects’ ingenuity and the technical solutions required for such a slender structure, while others question whether building so narrow a tower makes practical sense. The debate centres on guest comfort, the experience of staying in highly compact rooms, and the wider effects of a tall, thin building on the surrounding urban environment.
A precise completion date and hotel opening timetable have not been confirmed in the latest update. The start of initial work nevertheless shows that the long-planned project is moving into practical delivery. Attention is now likely to focus on construction progress, safety and quality control, and whether the compact hotel concept works in practice. The scheme could offer a notable case study for other dense cities weighing similarly unconventional sites.
Source: kun.uz