Project: Elizabeth Street Commercial Tower, Brisbane CBD

Project Description:

The proposal is for a 40 level high rise office building consisting of a two storey entry void space, three basement car parking levels, three podium floors containing offices, bicycle storage for 250 bikes and male and female amenities with locker spaces. The building is serviced by 12 lifts covering 14 low rise floors, 13 mid rise floors and 13 high rise floors.

The typical floor plate utilizes a central core arrangement. This allows for 100% of the perimeter glazing to be allocated to the occupants use on all floors, creating a naturally well lit workspace environment. Shading of the glass is by way of integrated double glazing units, in combination with both horizontal and vertical sun shading devices.

Perimeter glazing is set between 9-12m from core walls thus allowing for a flexible floor space where occupants can be planned as either single or multiple tenants.

Podium levels are built to the boundaries on four sides marrying up with the adjoining Elizabeth House roof level and the sill of the second level window of the Family Services building, in order to create an integrated building mass with the neighbouring properties.

The tower shape and form, with an octagonal shape floor plate, is derived by the implementation of planning restraints and the contextual circumstances of its central CBD location, and respective forms of nearby high rise office towers. The building form does not rely on a single extruded form from bottom to top; and subtle projections and recesses are located on key points of the tower. The building also transitions slightly over the upper levels in order to achieve a distinctive roof top form.

The glazed elevation of the tower provides a distinctive contrast to the historical references adopted by its neighbours, as well as complementing large scale and tall framed commercial towers near by at the corner of Charlotte Street and George Street, which essentially have the same floor plate and building mass.  The proposed building is meant to display a ‘Jewel in the Crown’ mentality to reflect the premium ‘A’ grade nature of its intended use. The jewel in this case is its crystalline glass prismatic geometric form, with its many facets, edges, recesses and projections.