The other two towers of the project, which are 250 metres tall and 210 metres tall respectively, were approved in two State Significant Development applications in late 2017.

The final tower fronts Hickson Road and was subject to a delayed development application process following feedback from the community and public agencies.

Objections from the City of Sydney raised concerns about a range of issues, including the tower’s built form and particularly the lack of a podium, wind impacts and mitigation, key worker housing management, tower interface with the public domain, non-compliance with the Apartment Design Guide, traffic impacts and car, bicycle and service vehicle parking provision, pedestrian connectivity, construction impacts, noise mitigation, crime prevention and securing retail fit out via separate approvals.

After addressing these issues, the tower was approved in early October.

It is the shortest of the three at 107 metres tall, with a two-storey retail podium.

The tower will contain 167 apartments sold on-market, and 48 apartments reserved for key worker accommodation.

The three towers, which make up the One Sydney Harbour development, will each be predominately residential and located to the south-east of the site of the under-construction Wilkinson Eyre designed Crown Casino hotel tower.

According to the practice’s design statement, the towers’ design is inspired by Sydney Harbour’s “constant kaleidoscopic motion of colour and sparkle”, as captured in a 1992 photograph by David Moore.

The towers “have been conceived as crystals”, with highly transparent facades.

RPBW is an international architectural practice with offices in Paris and Genoa.

The workshop is led by 11 partners, including founder and Pritzker Prize laureate, architect Renzo Piano. 

Born into a family of boat builders, Piano made his name with the 1971 completion of the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris.

RPBW’s notable buildings also include The Shard in London (2012), and the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City (2015).

Emanuela Baglietto is the RPBW partner in charge of the Sydney project.

“In Sydney, attention to the environment is very important,” Baglietto said.

“For this project we have followed the Green Star regulations which provide for sustainability in building.”