Cromwell plans $85m development in Canberra

Cromwell bought the property in 2005. It currently has four storeys and a net lettable area of 7000 sq m.

Cromwell’s head of property, Bobby Binning, said the development application was consistent with the company’s portfolio of value-added projects.

“Cromwell’s development pipeline consists of over $1 billion of value-add projects either under way, or likely to commence within the next few years,” he said.

Mr Binning said the development would benefit from a new generation of end-of-trip facilities with up to 136 bike parking spaces, 18 showers and 214 lockers, as well as a ground floor cafe and 225 basement car parking spaces.

“We have been investing in the ACT for 20 years now and we believe this development is well placed to take advantage of the tight Barton leasing market. Once complete, the new building will add over 10,000 sq m ofadditional NLA to our Canberra portfolio,” he said.

Precinct to be overhauled

“Situated within close proximity of Parliament House and other key federal government agencies, opposite the National Press Club of Australia, and with hotel accommodation located both adjacent to and across from thesite, we are very excited about this opportunity,” he concluded.

The site sits within a bigger precinct that is going to have a major redevelopment.

Nearby, an 11.500 sq m corner block that has remained vacant for decades because it is home to an endangered species of moth was sold last year by the federal government to two local developers, Doma and Goodwin and Kenyon Group, in a deal understood to be worth about $38 million.

At the time, Doma said it would look to build offices of up to 40,000sq m across one or two buildings that would cater to government and private sector tenants.

Doma, which owns the Litte National Hotel next door, also plans to build a six-storey 11,000sq m commercial building with a basement car park on the other side of the hotel.