Eliza's excavation feat in Elizabeth St, Sydney

Innovative Sydney developer

Ceerose had to think ‘inside the square’ when excavating on a confined 290sqm block in busy Elizabeth Street for its 17-storey residential tower

Eliza.

Hemmed in by tall buildings, constricted by CBD congestion, and corralled on a site less than one-third the size of a traditional quarter acre block, the excavation took a painstaking 12 months. Heavy digging machinery was ultimately craned out of the 25-metre deep pit. Two excavators dug the hole, progressively tipping the rock and rubble into a heavy metal bucket which was hoisted onto a cantilevered platform at ground level. The contents were emptied into the back of a waiting truck, then the bucket lowered for the process to start again.

Ceerose obtained Council permission to bring in a 300-tonne crane and to partially close Elizabeth Street from 5pm to 2am.

“It was the most stressful four hours of my life . . . and that includes being at the birth of my three children,” said Edward Doueihi, who founded Ceerose in 1998.

The six-level foundations and car parking levels are now complete, and

Eliza

is starting to come out of the ground. Mr Doueihi estimates he can now pour one floor every 10 days on average, with the structure expected to top-out in October.

Designed by

Tony Owen Architects using the latest architectural technology and visualisation software, Eliza offers completely bespoke apartments with no floor plan repetition. Every floor is a different shape and each apartment is individual.

The facade is contoured, sculptured and asymmetrical, with serpentine swirls and artistic flourishes. The form and fluidity of the building has been linked directly to important environmental factors, and at its rear will be a living ‘green screen’– a five storey-high wall of evergreen climbing plants.

“We wanted to avoid the uniformity of most Sydney apartment developments, so we engaged Tony Owen to design a building that shakes up prevailing design standards,” said Mr Doueihi. “We have no doubt that

Eliza

will be the finest residential development in the CBD, and we hope it inspires others to think outside the box.”

All 19 apartments in

Eliza

have sinuous floor-to-ceiling windows optimising light, airflow and views over Hyde Park. From levels two to six are 10 half-floor apartments with two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a study. On the upper levels are eight four-bedroom apartments, each taking up an entire floor.

The penthouse has two complete floors of internal living space over 367sqm, plus a 200sqm rooftop level with limestone paving, hardwood timber decking, a landscaped garden, an infinity-edge pool, an outdoor kitchen and entertaining facilities.

Eliza

is being marketed through Jean-Paul Markopoulos of

CBRE Residential with 10 apartments sold to date. Prices range from $1.7 million for an 83sqm two bedroom apartment to $4.0 million for a 207sqm full-floor four bedroom apartment. Pricing for the four bedroom, six bathroom penthouse is available on application.