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Sydney Explained, Punchbowl Road, Sydney (2026)

07/09/2026

CONSTRUCTION COMMENCES ON SYDNEY’S NEXT SKYSCRAPER 🏙️📍372-382 Pitt Street
Demolition works have commenced on the rear of an Edwardian era row of shops at 372-382 Pitt Street, to allow for the construction of a major 60-storey mixed-use hotel and retail tower.

Following an architectural design competition, the proposed building’s current design was awarded to Kerry Hill Architects (working alongside Crone), replacing earlier concept iterations by Woods Bagot.

The original plans included residential apartments however, the updated design under the current owners, completely removed the residential component. It is now dedicated solely to hotel and retail uses.

The tower will reach a maximum building height of RL 206.1 metres. The building features a 517-room hotel spanning roughly 16,295 square metres of Gross Floor Area. The ground floor will include approximately 1,130 square metres of retail tenancies.

The tower’s built form features a distinct podium and tower layout characterised by rounded corners and exposed cantilevering soffits. Inside the podium, a massive void creates an expansive entryway connecting the street level to the tower.

The site is historically occupied by a row of 1910–1912 Edwardian three-storey commercial terraces. The design requires the partial demolition of these structures, but it will preserve and restore the historical facades to form the exterior face of the new podium. Blank walls will be eliminated to visually open the streetscape and activate the ground level.

Vehicle and service access will be managed from the rear via a private laneway known as Carruthers Place.

*All renders sourced from Kerry Hill Architects. All site photographs taken by Sydney by Simon in September 2026.

06/09/2026

MELROSE CENTRAL TOWN CENTRE OPENING 🛍️ 📍Melrose Park
The newly opened Melrose Central shopping centre (officially launched in early September 2026) features a distinct architectural vision masterminded by TURNER

As the retail anchor of the massive Melrose Park Urban Renewal Precinct, the centre spans 30,000 square metres across four levels and blends urban design with a heavy emphasis on community walkability.

Rather than a traditional, monolithic enclosed mall, the site acts as a fit-for-purpose town centre that naturally integrates into the surrounding neighborhood.

The masterplan establishes key “through-site links” that naturally split the massive building footprint at ground level into four smaller quadrants

The retail level transitions into an outdoor restaurant precinct. This dining zone is positioned to directly overlook the adjacent future Central Park, balancing built structures with extensive open space.

The new centre also features HomeTown, an Asian-inspired street food precinct designed with neon-lit laneways and live grill stations.

The Coles at Melrose Central is widely marketed as the largest Coles supermarket in Australia. The nearly 4,000-square-metre flagship store serves as the primary retail anchor for the new town centre precinct.

Rising directly above the four-level commercial retail podium are six distinct residential buildings. To prevent the complex from feeling uniform, the architectural facade is broken up so that each building features a unique colour scheme and varying height.

Key corner structures use specific material palettes to anchor the precinct. A civic clock tower and matured olive tree mark the main corner as a local landmark.

The Melrose Park Urban Renewal Precinct is one of the largest and most significant master-planned urban transformation projects in Sydney. Spanning 30 hectares, this $5 billion precinct is transitioning a former industrial zone into a high-density residential and commercial hub. Staged over a 15-year timeline, the master plan will ultimately house around 12,000 residents across 6,000 new apartments.

05/09/2026

“SPRING IS BLOOMING“ POP-UP 🌷🌼🌸📍Martin Place
The Van Cleef & Arpels "Spring is Blooming" pop-up has transformed Martin Place into an immersive, fairytale-like garden. In collaboration with French illustrator Charlotte Gastaut, the space features oversized blooms, photo spots (bridges, swings, and benches), and complimentary gelato.

The pop-up garden in Sydney is part of a global brand tradition that blends the French jewellery house’s deep heritage with public art installations.

The brand began hosting open-air spring installations in New York City in 2022. The massive success of these installations led the Maison to turn them into an annual global tradition, setting up similar fairytale gardens in Tokyo's Marunouchi district, Hong Kong, and now Sydney.

The distinct aesthetic of the Sydney pop-up is due to French illustrator Charlotte Gastaut. Known predominantly for illustrating lavish children's books and luxury silk scarves, Gastaut partnered with the brand to bridge high-end jewellery design immersive graphic art. Her signature style features multi-layered, oversized paper-cutout style blooms, geometric birds, and whimsical butterflies that bring the jewellery house's drawings into 3D form.

📅 Key Event Details
* Dates: Running from Thursday, 3 September to Sunday, 13 September 2026.
* Hours: Weekdays from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm; Weekends from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.
* Cost: Free entry. The garden is open to anyone wanting to wander through.

04/09/2026

THE EXCHANGE HOTEL (1911) TO BE DEVELOPED INTO AN UPMARKET STEAK DINING, HOTEL & DRINKS VENUE. 📍Oxford Street Darlinghurst.

The current building for the Exchange Hotel on Oxford Street in Darlinghurst was constructed in 1911, replacing an earlier Sinnott’s Exchange Hotel on the same site (demolished after road widening).

The hotel was designed by City of Sydney architect James Henry Merriman in 1911. The builders were William Maston and Thomas Yates.

The Edwardian style building presents three storeys to Oxford Street and four storeys to Winns Lane at the rear due to the sloping ground.
The front facade features distinctive semi-circular parapets. The external vertical structure remains visually intact.

By the 1990s, the venue cemented itself as a cornerstone of Oxford Street’s vibrant gay and le***an scene, acting as a crucial social sanctuary and celebration space.

The building housed up to six distinct entertainment spaces. This included the subterranean bar Phoenix, live music and club hub Spectrum, and upstairs staple Q-Bar

Facing mounting economic pressures, including the impact of the NSW Government’s 1.30am lockout laws, the complex was sold and closed its doors in July 2015.

The historical building has faced subsequent periods of closure, stalled renovations, and ownership shifts complicated by heritage building challenges.

Hospitality operator Tom Wallace and his group, Harbour Hospitality, are driving the latest redevelopment project after targeting the venue following the collapse of its previous owner, Jon Adgemis’ Public Hospitality Group.

Plans reveal a multi-million-dollar makeover to transform the former nightclub and four-floor heritage building into a premium steakhouse, boutique hotel rooms, and a cocktail lounge.

Let’s hope something happens soon to revive this Oxford Street landmark before it collapses under its own weight due to neglect.

04/09/2026

THE AUSTRALIAN FLAG IS MARKING ITS 125th ANNIVERSARY 🇦🇺📍Sydney Harbour Bridge.
The Australian National Flag was first flown on September 3, 1901, after the federal government held a national design competition following Federation.

Prime Minister Edmund Barton launched a competition that drew nearly 33,000 entries. Five entrants submitted nearly identical designs and shared the prize.

The flag debuted over the dome of the Royal Exhibition Building in Melbourne on September 3, 1901, which is now celebrated as Australian National Flag Day.

The large Commonwealth Star originally had six points to represent the six federated states. A seventh point was added in 1908 to represent Australia's territories.

The flag features the Union Jack in the canton, the seven-pointed Commonwealth Star, and the Southern Cross constellation

Happy 125th Anniversary the Australian Flag

#🇦🇺

03/09/2026

The southern pylon of the Sydney Harbour Bridge is illuminated in purple this evening (September 3, 2026) as a tribute to 18-year-old hiker Lily Hooper following her tragic passing in Nattai National Park.

The visual tribute, confirmed by NSW Premier Chris Minns, ran from sunset until midnight on the day of her private funeral service.

Lily worked as a tour guide for BridgeClimb Sydney, leading visitors to the top of the iconic landmark. Her father, Jim Hooper, personally requested a “sky-high” tribute from the Premier to honour his daughter’s fearless and unstoppable spirit.

The lighting served as a public symbol of solidarity with her family after a harrowing eight-day search ended in heartbreak in late August.

02/09/2026

WORLD SKYSCRAPER DAY 🏙️📍Sydney House Development.
World Skyscraper Day is celebrated every year on September 3rd to honour the engineering and architectural marvels that shape our city skylines. The date marks the birthday of American architect Louis H. Sullivan (born September 3, 1856), known as the father of skyscrapers, who pioneered the first high-rise buildings.

Sydney House (pictured) is Sydney’s newest skyscraper under construction at 194–204 Pitt Street. The $800 million, 50-storey mixed-use skyscraper that blends a modern residential and hotel tower with a multi-era heritage restoration.

The project spans four distinct architectural eras (from Victorian Free Classical to modern day), restoring three historic buildings originally tied to the City Tattersalls Club site.

The high-rise tower and interiors were designed by BVN Architecture, while the intricate heritage podium was led by FJC Studio.

Upon its expected completion in late 2027, it will feature 241 luxury residences, a 135-room hotel, and a restored heritage podium with upscale dining and function spaces.

Happy World Skyscraper Day.

01/09/2026

BARRACK HOUSE CELEBRATES ITS CENTENARY WITH A RESTORATION 🏛️ 📍343 George Street
The heritage-listed building was constructed between 1921 and 1925, and was built in two stages. The Barrack Street section went up first, followed by the George Street section.

The building was originally known as Barrack House, and served as the main office for the Commercial Banking Company of Sydney until the bank merged in the 1980s to become the National Australia Bank (NAB). Banking operations continued in the building until 2008.

The building was design by architects Kent and Massie, and follows the Inter-war Commercial Palazzo style, which made office buildings look like grand Italian palaces, and projected confidence and stability in banking during the 1920s. The ground floor features rare Australian marble finishes and bronze details inside the main banking chamber.

The lower ground floor holds a rare circular Chubb Safe Deposit Vault door, which is one of only two of its kind left in Australia, and represents the pinnacle of 1920s security engineering

When the adjacent building at 341 George Street was built as the Bank of New South Wales headquarters in 1932, prominent architects (including Professor Leslie Wilkinson from the University of Sydney) publicly panned the two mismatched designs as “one of the most clashing things I have ever seen”

A New South Wales Government-owned superannuation fund now owns the property. The upper levels operate as commercial office spaces for companies such as Atlassian, while the luxury brand Burberry occupies the prominent ground-floor retail space.

The landmark building has just undergone a multi-million dollar façade remediation and sandstone conservation project managed by the City of Sydney to preserve its heritage features.

31/08/2026

CLARENCE CORPORATE CENTRE (1961) TO BE DEVELOPED INTO A HOTEL 🏨📍235-239 Clarence Street, Sydney.
The existing mid 20th Century-International Architectural style office building was constructed on the site of Princeton House in 1961.

In 1999-2000 the 7 storey building underwent significant interior refurbishments. Soon after, legal firm Uther Webster & Evans Pty Ltd relocated its offices to Levels 2 and 3 of the building, and Anania Australia tenanted Level 1.

An application to terminate the former strata scheme for the property was approved in mid-2026 to clear the way for redevelopment

Plans are now underway to convert the seven-storey office building at into an eight-storey, 69 room hotel. The redevelopment is projected to cost $16.6 million.

Specifically, the proposed works will include: Internal demolition of the existing commercial fit-out, excluding the lift core; External alterations of the level 7 roof terrace (currently comprising plant) to accommodate additional hotel rooms; Alterations to the existing ground floor retail tenancy to accommodate a new hotel lobby; and, Façade upgrades to improve the presentation and functionality of the building.

The proposal is currently undergoing its exhibition phase before being considered by the City of Sydney.

*All renders and architectural plans sourced from Stack Studio. All site photographs taken by Sydney by Simon in August 2026

30/08/2026

SYDNEY MARATHON 2026 🏃‍♂️ 🏃‍♀️🇦🇺. The 2026 TCS Sydney Marathon took place today, Sunday, 30 August 2026, marking its second official year as the seventh Abbott World Marathon Major. A record-breaking 40,000 registered participants took to the streets, running a 42.195 km course from Miller Street in North Sydney, over the Harbour Bridge, and finishing at the iconic Sydney Opera House.

Sydney Explained

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