A plan by the Star Casino in Pyrmont, New South Wales to build a 66-story Ritz Carlton hotel has been rejected by the NSW Independent Planning Commission as “overly intrusive.”
According to the Daily Mail, the proposal met with disapproval among neighbors of the inner Sydney casino, who said it would obstruct their views and was not a good fit for the area. The $530 million luxury tower would have included 220 rooms, three pools, two gyms, a spa and wellness center, and a new parking lot; the Star hoped it would help lure Chinese tourists to the casino.
The tower was deemed “inconsistent with current strategic planning for the site and locality and fails to promote the orderly use and development of land” the commission found. The Department of Planning, Industry and Environment also frowned on the plan, saying the Ritz Carlton would appear “isolated and overly prominent” within the Sydney skyline.
“The department considers the proposed tower is inconsistent with and would adversely affect the established character of Pyrmont,” it said in a statement. ‘The proposal will have overshadowing impacts to public spaces including Union Square, Pyrmont Bay Park and Pyrmont Bridge. The impacts will occur during autumn and winter and will reduce the amenity of those spaces.”
