Poly Centre, a new 27-storey office tower designed by Grimshaw stands out on the Sydney skyline with its unique sculptural form. Located at 210, George Street, Poly Centre is a vital part of the emerging Alfred, Pitt, Daley and George Streets (APDG) precinct, adjacent to Circular Quay.

The sculptural form has three distinct elements – the east-facing lift core, a 27-storey central tower facing westward, and an 11-storey tower formed by a series of cantilevered arches creating a sheltered public space.

Grimshaw has conceptualised Poly Centre as a series of vertical villages created by expansive double-height volumes that accommodate workspaces, and combine the highest level of amenity with a heightened sense of community. The western facades feature expressed vertical blades that enable transparency to the street while also shading occupants at different times of the day.

“Grimshaw’s Poly Centre is designed to maximise daylight, enable greater connectivity within and enhance enjoyment of public realm beyond,” says Andrew Cortese, managing partner at Grimshaw’s Sydney studio.

“We devised a system of elegantly elongated concrete arcs that are expressed at street level and repeated across each double-height floor plate to create mezzanines throughout the 27-storey build. On the top floor ‘city room’ the arcs reappear as expressed steel.”

Offering 19,500 square metres of office space, the building features an impressive lobby on the ground floor, which is formed by a curvilinear wall, laminated in folding brass, and displays Janet Laurence’s public art – an evocation of indigenous landscapes – suspended in glass panes above the corner atria. Outside, beneath the podium cantilever, an elongated glazed canopy delicately hangs from the arching columns. Street fronting retail and hospitality spaces are situated in double height volumes with each tenancy presented within individualised shopfront assemblies.

Poly Centre’s sustainability features include high performance curved glazing, rainwater harvesting and recycling, and energy monitoring. The building has also targeted a 5-star Green Star As-Built rating and a 5-star NABERS Energy rating.

Images: Photography by Peter Bennetts

Branko Miletic

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