Grocon Recognised

Grocon is delighted to announce that Liberty Place and Swanston Square Apartments have been internationally recognised for architectural design excellence.

Liberty Place has been announced as one of the winners of the 2015 Chicago Athenaeum International Architecture Award, which celebrates the most outstanding architecture designed throughout the world.

The 6 Star Green Star development, which includes the iconic ANZ Tower, retail, dining and pedestrian precincts, and the heritage-listed Legion House, is situated in the heart of Sydney’s central business district, has been recognised for its significant architectural and environmental innovation.

A central element to the Liberty Place development was the rare and complex heritage refurbishment of Legion House, a historic and protected building. The Legion House refurbishment represents true innovation as the first green heritage refurbishment of its kind, and now sets a benchmark for sustainable refurbishments globally.

The award recognises Grocon’s development excellence and the high quality architectural design by the team at FJMT led by Richard Francis-Jones. The development has also won a number of construction, design and sustainability awards since its completion in 2013, including the Office Building of the Year at the 2014 World Architecture Festival in Singapore.

Grocon’s iconic Swanston Square Apartments in Melbourne has also been selected as a finalist as a Best Tall Building Asia and Australasia by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH).

Swanston Square Apartments is recognised for its remarkable and innovative facade dedicated to William Barak, an Aboriginal artist and civil rights leader, whose tribe has a deep and enduring history in what is now Melbourne’s CBD and its surrounds. Working alongside ARM architects and leading Australian artist Peter Schipperheyn, Grocon used innovative technology and architectural design to figure an impression of William Barak into the balcony profile of the building.  

Grocon Chief Executive Officer, Carolyn Viney said “Liberty Place and Swanston Square Apartments stand today as unique features of some of this country’s well-known skylines. We are delighted that they have been recognised alongside some of the world’s most architecturally significant buildings.”

“The developments demonstrate Grocon’s continued commitment to delivering high quality outcomes through design excellence and innovation, something which could not be achieved without the dedication and spirit of collaboration that exists with our high calibre project teams and partners.”