Perth-based Griffin Group does not anticipate delays to the Westralia Square project despite the public troubles of its joint venture partner in the deal, construction giant Multiplex.
Perth-based Griffin Group does not anticipate delays to the Westralia Square project despite the public troubles of its joint venture partner in the deal, construction giant Multiplex.
Griffin and Multiplex bought the site at 125-134 St Georges Terrace from Australia’s richest man, Kerry Packer in 2003 for $19 million with plans to begin construction this year.
Multiplex revealed this week that it faced a $109 million cost overrun on the London Wembley Stadium project.
A Griffin Group spokesman said: “We have no issues with Multiplex and the project is progressing as per agreement between all parties.
“At this stage it is still in the design stage.
“There’s been no discussion of it [the issues troubling Multiplex in London] over this project.”
Multiplex’s Perth founder, John Roberts, has stood down as Multiplex chairman but remains a director.
Efforts to contact Multiplex to confirm the fate of the Westralia Square project have failed to draw a response from its Perth-based director, Jeff Holloway.
However, in early February Mr Holloway told WA Business News that Multiplex and Griffin were “within weeks of finalising the design”.
He also said the design for what is expected to be a four-tower complex was almost complete, and that Multiplex intended to file a development application with Perth City Council in March.
“We are within weeks of finalising the design and are very confident that we will start the project in August of this year,” Mr Holloway said in February.
With three months to go before that deadline arrives there is still time to submit the development application and begin work.
So confident was Multiplex of an early 2005-06 start-up that negotiations were well advanced with an anchor tenant for the Westralia Square complex.
CBD property sources have speculated that the National Australia Bank (NAB) was likely to be that anchor tenant.
Furthermore, several office tenants are likely to be seeking space when their leases expire in 2007, including the Department of Premier and Cabinet, (24,000sq m), the Department of Justice (16,000sq m); Alinta (4,000-5,000sq m) and the NAB (8,000sq m).
And Rupert Murdoch’s The Sunday Times is known to want to vacate its long-held Stirling Street site for a premium CBD venue.
The Sunday Times is reported to have considered several sites but is understood not have to have made a final commitment.
If Westralia Square is unavailable by then other development sites looking for sizeable tenants include Bishops See (Hawaiian Management), 1,000 St George Terrace (Pivot) and Raine Square (Luke Saraceni).
