$1bn move to immortalise Princess Di, INXS
A plan to turn one of Australia’s most famous hotels into a ‘$1bn lifestyle destination’ includes plans to immortalise late icons Michael Hutchence and Princess Diana.
Developers want to transform the Intercontinental Double Bay site into a ‘$1bn lifestyle destination’ — and its links to late icons Michael Hutchence and Princess Diana won’t be forgotten.
Along with three cinemas, high-end retail and dining, offices, a health and wellness centre, a boutique hotel and 29 luxury apartments in a seven-storey building, Capitel Group Managing Director, Eduard Litver wants to celebrate the unique past of a Sydney “icon”.
“There’s been Michael Hutchence, Princess Diana, Bill Clinton and Elton John … so much history and we want to bring that to life to some extent,” Litver told the Wentworth Courier, saying it could take the form of a permanent visual display.
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An artist’s impression of the street facade.
INXS frontman Michael Hutchence was found dead at the hotel in 1997.
“We’re going to create some incredible community areas — 90 per cent of the ground floor will be accessible to the public, including a laneway connection to Transvaal Avenue.”
The Courier hopes to see The Michael Hutchence Memorial Bar appear.
It will be 27 years tomorrow (November 22, 1997) since INXS frontman Michael Hutchence was found dead in a room at the hotel when it was known as the Ritz Carlton.
That was four months after Princess Diana died in a car accident in Paris — she’d stayed at the Double Bay hotel in November, 1996.
The Ritz Carlton was renamed Sir Stamford Double Bay in 2001 and, after sitting empty and dilapidated for six years, following a revamp, the Intercontinental in 2014.
It had been where all the international celebrities stayed when they came to Sydney, but its star appeal has long since faded.
A syndicate led by developer Mervyn Basserable, Litver and Rebel Property managing director Allen Linz bought it for $215m in March.
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Balcony of the room inside the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Double Bay, occupied by rock legend singer Michael Hutchence and scene of his alleged suicide death on November 22, 1997.
Michael Hutchence, Paula Yates and their daughter Heavenly Hiraani Tigerlilly in October, 199 in London. He died in Sydney a month later.
Announcing the lodgement of a development application with Woollahra council to replace the “outdated” 140-room hotel on the 3,674 sqm block — the largest privately held site in the village — Litver said in a press release: “Over the past 25 years there have been numerous concepts, schemes, ownership changes and refurbishments in an attempt to revitalise the site without sustained success.”
He declared: “This is Double Bay’s moment.
“Our focus is to deliver the next evolution of this Sydney icon – a truly mixed-use lifestyle destination of enduring quality that inspires local pride and garners global recognition, and aligns to Woollahra Council’s vision for Double Bay Village.”
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The entry to where the cinema will be located.
To be known as 33 Cross Street, the project is by COX Architecture with development managers Metis Group.
COX Director Ramin Jahromi said the design includes a “spectacular atrium with sculptural staircase and striking public art installation, a generous north-facing courtyard, and a six-metre-wide pedestrian walkway connecting Cross St to Galbraith Walkway and down to Double Bay Beach”.
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Litver says it will be a world-class building.
When speaking to the Courier, Litver said he hoped to start construction in 2026 with completion by late 2028.
Litver and Linz had collaborated for another major project in the east — Bondi Pacific.
“We visualised this project around the same time we finished Pacific, and that became the centre of Bondi once we’d completed it,” Litver said.
“We’re taking that and creating a much more boutique and sophisticated version of that, which is more aligned to what Double Bay is.”
COX had been chosen after a design competition. “The building they have designed has been inspired by projects in London, New York and Miami,” he added.
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Princess Diana arrives at The Ritz Carlton Hotel, Double Bay, in November, 1996.
The room where she stayed was a feast for the senses.
The 29 apartments will include one-bedders through to four-bedders, though mostly three-bedroom. He said it was too early to discuss pricing.
Litver expects most of the buyers will be empty-nesters, though he says increasingly young professionals. “It’s no longer a retirement village … we’ve got not food and international brands coming into Double Bay,” he said.
“Our vision is to bring back the likes of Tiffanys … their very first store was in the Ritz Carlton Hotel — they’ve always wanted to come back to Double Bay, but there’s never been a quality offering that would give them a reason to come back.
“Now we’re creating a beautiful building that’s really world-class.”
