39 Hunter Street in the Sydney CBD has become the first heritage building in Australia to achieve a 6 Star Green Star rating.

This rating, announced last week by the Green Building Council of Australia, is a ground-breaking achievement for a heritage building.

The awarding of this accreditation is the culmination of an extensive collaboration between the building owner, Kador Group, project manager JCK Consulting, architects Jackson Teece, and engineers and ESD consultants Arup. CB Richard Ellis, who is the leasing agent, has been involved in the project from its inception.

This consultative approach has achieved an outstanding outcome for the iconic 90 year old building which will make it relevant for decades to come.

The extensive refurbishment project to the 7 level, 6,000m² building, which is the former home of Perpetual Trustees, is currently underway with completion expected early in 2009.

It is an exponential leap to attain a 6 Green Star rating over and above 5 Green Stars. Ingenuity and a commitment to achieving the best possible sustainable outcome were the keys to this achievement which is expected to generate significant tenant interest.

Initiatives include use of fire sprinkler tanks for thermal storage, peak electrical load reduction, displacement air-conditioning system, lighting controls, rainwater collection and re-use, waste reduction, bicycle storage, and recycling and re-use of the existing fitout and furnishings.

The Kador Group has previously achieved ground-breaking results with the refurbishment of its 30 year-old building at 500 Collins Street in Melbourne. In November, 2006 this building was the first CBD high-rise refurbishment to achieve a 5 Green Star rating.

Kador Managing Director, Carolyn Parker, said that the company was delighted that 39 Hunter Street, Sydney has demonstrated that a high level of sustainability can be incorporated within the restoration and refurbishment of heritage properties. She said "the building was at the leading edge when constructed 90 years ago, and it is fitting that it is again restored to this position".

39 Hunter Street is in the early stage of marketing, targeting prospective tenants seeking an iconic headquarters serviced by state of the art technology.

Jenine Cranston, Director Office Services at CB Richard Ellis, said interest in the building had been widespread and the Green Star rating was expected to fuel additional interest given the heightened tenant focus on sustainability in recent times.

"We are seeing tenants shift from having a basic interest in bricks and mortar to a genuine support for environmentally inspired office space for the health and productivity benefits flowing from these design initiatives." Ms Cranston said.

"Employers are recognizing that environmentally sustainable offices provide tangible benefits and can play a role in the attraction and retention of staff".
Romilly Madew, Chief Executive of the Green Building Council of Australia, said that 39 Hunter Street has dispelled the myth that an existing heritage building could not be green.

"The Australian property industry is continuing to push the boundaries of developing new green buildings and, with a 6 Star Green Star certified rating, 39 Hunter Street has become a showcase for greening the existing building stock on a global scale.

Frasers’ application, lodged in early August with the NSW Department of Planning, proposes two residential towers of 116m and 64.5m high – the tallest tower matching the height of the neighbouring UTS Tower – above a common retail and recreational podium and garden. The $600 million complex will deliver 593 apartments across the two towers in a mix of studio, 1, 2 and 3 bedroom apartments, plus 14,000sqm of retail space.

Dramatically extending from the taller tower is a monumental cantilever housing a panoramic terrace and a theatrical public artwork: a innovative system of fixed and motorized mirrored panels known as a ‘heliostat’. The heliostat will capture sunlight and reflect it down onto the landscaped terraces, extending the central parkland at the heart of the new precinct into this very green building.

At night, the heliostat will be transformed by French lighting artist Yann Kersale, theatrically and colourfully illuminating the towers. Yann Kersale is a lighting artist of world renown and French architect Jean Nouvel is the 2008 Pritzker Prize winner – architecture’s top international accolade – continuing Frasers’ practice of working with the world’s best architects and designers.

Adding to the extraordinary nature of this creative architecture, French botanist Patrick Blanc has been commissioned to design and install a number of his renowned ‘vegetal’ vertical living artworks. These will combine with Jean Nouvel’s vertical gardens to cover 50% of the buildings’ façades with living greenery.

Blanc’s vegetal walls together with the vertical gardens will extend the planted area of the adjacent urban park vertically onto the building, creating a green wall of foliage installed onto grids extending to the full height of the buildings. The plants receive nutrients and water from a patented hydroponic system and so are able to thrive without being planted in soil.

This is the fourth PA submitted by Frasers Property Australia this year as we prepare for construction commencement next year. Previous PAs include applications for a Foster + Partners designed commercial campus on the corner of Broadway and Abercrombie Streets, and for a 6000sqm public park.