Exchange Plaza
Encyclopedia
Exchange Plaza is a 40-storey
skyscraper
in Perth
, Western Australia
. Completed in 1991, the 146 metres (479 ft) building is the State headquarters of the Australian Securities Exchange
. Currently it is the fourth tallest skyscraper in Perth after QV.1
, the BankWest Tower
and Central Park
.
, a gentlemen's club
located at the rear of the site, at the corner of Barrack Street
and The Esplanade. The land was leased by the Weld Club to the tower's developers for 135 years.
The building was the result of a 50–50 joint venture between Westpac
subsidiary Australian Guarantee Corporation
and the Japanese
C. Itoh and Shimizu. Construction on the building started during the 1980s property boom at a cost of between A$
220 million and $230 million. The tower was built by Multiplex
, topping out
occurred in mid-1991 and construction completed in 1992.
The roof of the building has been used as a base from which to launch shells in the annual Lotterywest Skyworks
fireworks
display.
for $106 million. The acquisition was structured as a 50-50 joint venture between the Schroders Property Fund and the unlisted Schroders Private Property Syndicate.
This was the largest CBD office purchase since AMP purchased the BankWest Tower in 1994.
Control of the building was obtained by AMP Asset Management
when it took over the Schroders property portfolios in 1999.
In June 2003, Stockland bought a 50% share in the building. By 2006, the building was jointly owned by Stockland Trust Group and Colonial First State Property PPS Fund.
. It is a steel-framed
structure with pre-cast concrete
floor panels. The exterior of the building is fully glazed with curtain walls, which step back at the upper levels. The unique blue glass was produced in a one-off batch by Pilkingtons Australia.
The building features a 150-seat conference centre and uninterrupted river views from most levels
all across Perth Water
and west all the way to Rottnest Island
.
The building has 34479 square metres (371,128.9 sq ft) of net lettable area across 33 commercial office levels.
In addition there are three plant floor
levels and five basement parking levels, with 236 car parking spaces. Construction on the southern car park started in January 1998 and finished in May 2000, and involved the construction of the deepest wall that had ever been built in Perth. The complex also includes a 10-storey podium
building fronting Sherwood Court.
As part of the development, dining, accommodation, tennis
and bowls
facilities were constructed for the Weld Club. The existing bowling green
of the Weld Club had to be excavated for the construction of the car park, then replaced. In order to preserve as far as possible the historic character of the Weld Club site, the developers had to secure century-old bricks and tiles to integrate the base of the tower with the Club complex.
Storey
A storey or story is any level part of a building that could be used by people...
skyscraper
Skyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...
in Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. Completed in 1991, the 146 metres (479 ft) building is the State headquarters of the Australian Securities Exchange
Australian Securities Exchange
The Australian Securities Exchange was created by the merger of the Australian Stock Exchange and the Sydney Futures Exchange in July 2006. It is the primary stock exchange group in Australia....
. Currently it is the fourth tallest skyscraper in Perth after QV.1
QV.1
QV.1 is a 40-storey modernist skyscraper in Perth, Western Australia. Completed in 1991, the building is presently the fourth-tallest building in Perth, after Central Park, the yet to be completed BHP Tower and the BankWest Tower...
, the BankWest Tower
BankWest Tower
The BankWest Tower is a 52-storey office tower in Perth, Western Australia. Completed in 1988, the building measures to its roof and to the tip of its communications antenna. It was the tallest building in Perth from its completion in 1988 until 1992 when it was overtaken in height by Central...
and Central Park
Central Park (skyscraper)
Central Park is a 51-storey office tower in Perth, Western Australia. The building measures from its base at St Georges Terrace to the roof, and to the tip of its communications mast. Upon its completion in 1992, the tower became the tallest building in Perth...
.
Site history and construction
The land on which the tower stands is owned by the historic Weld ClubWeld Club
The Weld Club is a gentlemen's club in Perth, Western Australia, founded in 1871 by members of the establishment of Perth. It was named after the then Governor of Western Australia, Sir Frederick Weld with the club building designed by Talbot Hobbs and constructed in 1892.-External links:*...
, a gentlemen's club
Gentlemen's club
A gentlemen's club is a members-only private club of a type originally set up by and for British upper class men in the eighteenth century, and popularised by English upper-middle class men and women in the late nineteenth century. Today, some are more open about the gender and social status of...
located at the rear of the site, at the corner of Barrack Street
Barrack Street, Perth
Barrack Street is one of two major cross-streets in the central business district of Perth, Western Australia. Together with St Georges Terrace, Wellington Street and William Street it defines the boundary of the main shopping precinct of the central city....
and The Esplanade. The land was leased by the Weld Club to the tower's developers for 135 years.
The building was the result of a 50–50 joint venture between Westpac
Westpac
Westpac , is a multinational financial services, one of the Australian "big four" banks and the second-largest bank in New Zealand....
subsidiary Australian Guarantee Corporation
Australian Guarantee Corporation
Founded in 1925, AGC was Australia's oldest national finance company. AGC offered a range of finance, investment and insurance products and were market leaders in equipment finance, cashflow finance, motor vehicle and personal finance.- Origins :...
and the Japanese
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
C. Itoh and Shimizu. Construction on the building started during the 1980s property boom at a cost of between A$
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
220 million and $230 million. The tower was built by Multiplex
Multiplex (company)
Brookfield Multiplex is a global contracting and development company that designs, builds and maintains property and infrastructure assets.- History :Brookfield Multiplex was founded as Multiplex in 1962 in Perth, Western Australia by John Roberts...
, topping out
Topping out
In building construction, topping out is a ceremony held when the last beam is placed at the top of a building. The term may also refer to the overall completion of the building's structure, or an intermediate point, such as when the roof is dried in...
occurred in mid-1991 and construction completed in 1992.
Post-completion
Considered one of Perth's premium office towers, in July 2008 a portion of space halfway up Exchange Plaza was leased for $900 per square metre: the highest cost per square metre ever seen in Perth.The roof of the building has been used as a base from which to launch shells in the annual Lotterywest Skyworks
Lotterywest Skyworks
The City of Perth Skyworks is a fireworks show that is held over the section of the Swan River in Perth, Western Australia known as Perth Water. It is held every Australia Day on the 26th of January....
fireworks
Fireworks
Fireworks are a class of explosive pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. The most common use of a firework is as part of a fireworks display. A fireworks event is a display of the effects produced by firework devices...
display.
Ownership
In 1992, Westpac bought out the share in the development of C. Ito and Shimizu, and took over the AGC share in the property. Westpac put the tower's leasehold on the market in late 1996 at a hefty discount to its development cost. The leasehold was purchased in April 1997 by Schroders PropertySchroders
Schroders plc is a British multinational asset management company with over 200 years of experience in the world's financial markets. The company employs 2,905 people worldwide who are operating from 32 offices in 25 different countries around Europe, America, Asia and the Middle East...
for $106 million. The acquisition was structured as a 50-50 joint venture between the Schroders Property Fund and the unlisted Schroders Private Property Syndicate.
This was the largest CBD office purchase since AMP purchased the BankWest Tower in 1994.
Control of the building was obtained by AMP Asset Management
AMP Limited
AMP Limited is an Australian financial corporation. It operates primarily in Australia and New Zealand. AMP formed in 1849 as the Australian Mutual Provident Society, a non-profit life insurance company. In 1998 it was demutualised and listed on the Australian and New Zealand stock exchanges...
when it took over the Schroders property portfolios in 1999.
In June 2003, Stockland bought a 50% share in the building. By 2006, the building was jointly owned by Stockland Trust Group and Colonial First State Property PPS Fund.
Design
Exchange Plaza was designed by architects Peddle Thorp & WalkerPTW Architects
PTW Architects is an Australian architecture firm founded in Sydney in 1889.-Selected works:*AMP Place, Brisbane *National Gallery of Australia Extension *The Toaster Building...
. It is a steel-framed
Steel frame
Steel frame usually refers to a building technique with a "skeleton frame" of vertical steel columns and horizontal -beams, constructed in a rectangular grid to support the floors, roof and walls of a building which are all attached to the frame...
structure with pre-cast concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
floor panels. The exterior of the building is fully glazed with curtain walls, which step back at the upper levels. The unique blue glass was produced in a one-off batch by Pilkingtons Australia.
The building features a 150-seat conference centre and uninterrupted river views from most levels
all across Perth Water
Perth Water
Perth Water is the section of the Swan River between the Causeway to the east, and Narrows Bridge to the west - a large wide but shallow section of river on the southern edge of the City of Perth, Western Australia, and the northern edge of the suburb South Perth. Retrieved 29 December 2006...
and west all the way to Rottnest Island
Rottnest Island
Rottnest Island is located off the coast of Western Australia, near Fremantle. It is called Wadjemup by the Noongar people, meaning "place across the water". The island is long, and at its widest point with a total land area of . It is classified as an A Class Reserve and is managed by the...
.
The building has 34479 square metres (371,128.9 sq ft) of net lettable area across 33 commercial office levels.
In addition there are three plant floor
Mechanical floor
A mechanical floor, mechanical penthouse, or mechanical level is a storey of a high-rise building that is dedicated to mechanical and electronics equipment. "Mechanical" is the most commonly used term, but words such as utility, technical, service, and plant are also used...
levels and five basement parking levels, with 236 car parking spaces. Construction on the southern car park started in January 1998 and finished in May 2000, and involved the construction of the deepest wall that had ever been built in Perth. The complex also includes a 10-storey podium
Podium
A podium is a platform that is used to raise something to a short distance above its surroundings. It derives from the Greek πόδι In architecture a building can rest on a large podium. Podia can also be used to raise people, for instance the conductor of an orchestra stands on a podium as do many...
building fronting Sherwood Court.
As part of the development, dining, accommodation, tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
and bowls
Bowls
Bowls is a sport in which the objective is to roll slightly asymmetric balls so that they stop close to a smaller "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a pitch which may be flat or convex or uneven...
facilities were constructed for the Weld Club. The existing bowling green
Bowling green
A bowling green is a finely-laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of lawn for playing the game of lawn bowls.Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep on them...
of the Weld Club had to be excavated for the construction of the car park, then replaced. In order to preserve as far as possible the historic character of the Weld Club site, the developers had to secure century-old bricks and tiles to integrate the base of the tower with the Club complex.
See also
- BankWest TowerBankWest TowerThe BankWest Tower is a 52-storey office tower in Perth, Western Australia. Completed in 1988, the building measures to its roof and to the tip of its communications antenna. It was the tallest building in Perth from its completion in 1988 until 1992 when it was overtaken in height by Central...
- Central Park (skyscraper)Central Park (skyscraper)Central Park is a 51-storey office tower in Perth, Western Australia. The building measures from its base at St Georges Terrace to the roof, and to the tip of its communications mast. Upon its completion in 1992, the tower became the tallest building in Perth...
- List of tallest buildings in Australia