Crown Sydney is a casino and hotel that is currently topped out in Barangaroo, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. When it opens in 2020, it will be the second legal casino in Sydney, the other being The Star. However, unlike The Star, Crown Sydney's casino will only operate with VIP membership restrictions. With 75 floors and a height of, it will become the city's tallest building, surpassing Chifley Tower and excluding Sydney Tower, an observation tower. The structure overtook Chifley Tower's previous tallest height of 244 metres during its construction phases in December 2019, and topped out in March 2020.
History and subsequent planning approvals
's casino group, Crown Resorts, presented an A$1 billion+ proposal to PremierBarry O'Farrell in February 2012 to build a hotel, casino and entertainment complex at the site on land that was set aside for open space at Barangaroo Central. The Premier initially welcomed the proposal, yet cautioned it would need to gain regulatory approval before going ahead. The proposal drew widespread criticism from the Lord Mayor Clover Moore, Paul Keating, and former government architect, Chris Johnson. In October 2012, Premier O'Farrell announced that the NSW Cabinet reviewed the proposal and decided that the government will enter into detailed negotiations with Crown Limited for the establishment of a casino and hotel complex at Barangaroo. Tony Harris, a former NSW Auditor General was critical of the decision−making process, claiming the public could miss out on millions of dollars. Packer wrote a defence of his proposal for the press. In July 2013 after a recommendation from an independent steering committee, O'Farrell announced the Crown proposal would be moved to Stage 3 of the unsolicited proposals process, the final stage where the parties will negotiate a binding contract. The government is to receive a $100 million upfront fee for the licence, despite being offered $250 million with alternative tax arrangements which the steering committee's economic advisor Deloitte calculated was a superior offer. Crown's intention is to lure Chinese high-rollers to its Sydney casino leveraging off its interests in its Macau casinos and taking advantage of a new streamlined visa process introduced by the Australian government for Chinese citizens wanting to gamble at Australian casinos. In November 2013, it was announced that Crown Sydney received approval for the casino licence and place at Barangaroo. In November 2015, Packer expressed his frustrations over the delaying of the project from strenuous government planning laws. Following this in March 2016, a series of proposals to change aspects of the building were recommended by the State Government in order for the project to receive final approval. This included the introduction of a new recess in the interior as well as new cladding on the south side of the building. An observation deck as well as public access to the upper floors was also proposed. In June 2016, the casino received final approval from the Planning Assessment Commission on condition that the casino met needs proposed by the commission, including adequate public spaces and access. Despite this approval, the Millers Point Fund lodged legal action against the project in early August 2016 challenging the validity of the casino and aiming to have construction on the project halted. Crown Resorts responded, stating they would "vigorously defend" their actions. The dispute was held in the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales in late August, with a decisive dismissal of the Millers Point Fund's claims. Construction ultimately began in October 2016, with the structure topping out in March 2020. An ultimate completion date of December 2020 has been scheduled. Initial revisions estimated a completion date in 2021, however this has since been re-revised to late 2020.
Sociological criticism
Researchers from the Responsible Gambling Fund financed, University of Sydney Gambling Treatment Clinic, have suggested that strategies such as a minimum bet size are not likely to prevent the local community from being affected by problem gambling. They have suggested that students, new immigrants and working class individuals are typically and more likely found to be losing large amounts of money at Casino style table and electronic games. Academic researchers have suggested that while the casino is initially not licensed to offer poker machines, it will inevitably gain a licence in future years.
