Collins House is designed to enhance the western end of Collins Street with a bold and elegant landmark building, which derives its gracefulness from its slender proportions. The site’s main asset is the well proportioned and decorative heritage building, built in 1908. There is an opportunity to reinstate the original features and enhance the reading of the building through reconnecting internal spaces with the facade proportions, and the use of a well proportioned entry foyer, connected to the street though the re-instated original entry doors.
By setting the tower back from the exiting heritage facade and reinstating its original grandeur, the development seeks to create a landmark building both at street level and in the city skyline context. The particularly narrow site required a rethinking of the structure of tall buildings. Through an inventive structural system combined with cutting edge construction techniques, we have been able to completely reinvent the tall tower. The starting point in the design of the building is the expression and refinement of the structural system.
The H-shaped vertical concrete structure is over-clad with glass as a bold but elegant form. This is accompanied by a crisply detailed component which cantilevers over the air rights of the adjoining building, creating a unified and uniform skin over the eastern elevation. Exemplary amenities are located at Levels 3 and 27, with the provision of a luxurious resident lounge with terraced area and gym facilities overlooking the city.