{"id":952976,"date":"2026-11-05T02:08:13","date_gmt":"2026-11-05T02:08:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/952976\/"},"modified":"2026-11-05T02:08:13","modified_gmt":"2026-11-05T02:08:13","slug":"sydneys-skinniest-skyscraper-work-starts-on-33-storey-pencil-tower-in-haymarket","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/952976\/","title":{"rendered":"Sydney\u2019s skinniest skyscraper: Work starts on 33-storey \u2018pencil tower\u2019 in Haymarket"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Artist\u2019s impressions of a under construction \u201cpencil tower\u201d in Sydney\u2019s Haymarket. The site has 6.4m of frontage.<\/p>\n

A planned 33-storey \u201cpencil tower\u201d atop a Sydney site with just 6.4m of frontage has attracted a mixed reaction among onlookers after works were formally started over spring.<\/p>\n

The planned tower in Haymarket will be the city\u2019s skinniest high-rise upon completion, with the development to host a 173-room hotel and just two visitor lifts to service the entire building.<\/p>\n

The total site is about 345sqm \u2013 roughly the land allotment of a standard-sized tennis court.<\/p>\n

And at just 6.4m wide at ground level, its footprint on the street will be about as wide as two small hatchbacks parked bumper to bumper.<\/p>\n

MORE: If you earn less than this, you\u2019re in trouble<\/a><\/p>\n

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The site in Haymarket. Picture: Facebook<\/p>\n

The project on Pitt St had been in the planning and design stages for years, but took a big step closer to becoming a reality when early construction works were recently started on site.<\/p>\n

Urban planning consultancy Mecone managed the development application and described the project as a 33-storey \u201cpencil tower\u201d.<\/p>\n

Four architectural firms were invited to submit designs, with Durbach Block Jaggers selected as the preferred design in 2021.<\/p>\n

To make such a narrow site work, Neil Durbach, the architect, said at the time that \u201ceach (hotel) room is super compact, it\u2019s almost like a train compartment\u201d.<\/p>\n

MORE: Home prices plunge to 2021 levels in parts of Sydney<\/a><\/p>\n

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An artist\u2019s impression of the building next to the site, where works are currently underway. Picture: Facebook<\/p>\n

Mr Durbach was quoted saying the compactness of the rooms would be offset by generous shared spaces such as a pool at the top of the building and a big public room at the base.<\/p>\n

The project has received a mixed response from locals and observers, with some commending the ingenuity and the technical advances, but others taking issue with just how slim the building will be.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis surely isn\u2019t common sense,\u201d said a Facebook user commenting on artist\u2019s impressions of the planned building sandwiched between two other buildings.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo need for wall side windows, you ain\u2019t gonna see s*** out of them,\u201d said another, referring to the tight space between it and the neighbours.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

With 6.4m of frontage, the Haymarket building will be slimmer than Collins House, a 11m-wide \u201cskinny\u201d skyscraper in Melbourne. Picture: Golden Age<\/p>\n

Safeguards in the Haymarket design to prevent structural sway have not stopped some members of the public making the association between Manhattan\u2019s skinny towers.<\/p>\n

A social media user commenting on an update on the Haymarket project, said: \u201cCan\u2019t wait to see this tower swing side to side and make noises and crack,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n

Another said, sarcastically: \u201cWell, it worked so well for that tower in New York.\u201d<\/p>\n

One social media comment was: \u201cSome things need to just be laughed at and say no.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sydney is no stranger to structural issues in high-rise buildings. Back in 2018, residents of a Sydney Olympic Park building known as Opal Tower had to be evacuated after dangerous cracking was discovered.<\/p>\n

A year later, residents of a tower in Mascot were also evacuated due to rapid structural deformation, including cracking in the basement and support beams.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Artist\u2019s impressions of a under construction \u201cpencil tower\u201d in Sydney\u2019s Haymarket. The site has 6.4m of frontage. A…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":952977,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[449,458,459,64,63,460,134],"class_list":["post-952976","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-design","tag-entertainment"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/952976","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=952976"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/952976\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/952977"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=952976"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=952976"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=952976"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}