Luxe hotel plan before horror blaze

The heritage-listed building that went up in a roaring blaze in Sydney was slated to be the location of a fancy hotel.

More than 100 firefighters worked to contain the fire, which gutted the seven-storey building on Randle Street near Central Station, after it broke out just after 4pm on Thursday.

Firefighters worked all night to extinguish the blaze, graded as the most severe category of fire, as it sent smoke churning into the sky and crumbled the brick facade.

Local Surry Hills architecture firm Tonkin Zulaikha Greer designed the project which was submitted for development approval in 2019.

Tim Greer, the architect behind the design told The Daily Telegraphthat “construction was imminent” before the fire ripped through the building on Thursday.

“I’m still processing what happened, as we designed a beautiful hotel for this site, and were very much looking forward to seeing it built,” he said. “Looks like that won’t happen.”

He said the project had progressed to the stage of seeking out a building contract.

The reinvigoration of the former hat factory was due to cost the owners, Hanave Pty Limited, about $40m to redevelop.

“The New Hotel in Randle Street transforms the handsome Henderson Hat manufacturing warehouse building into a vibrant hotel,” the architecture firm’s website says of the project.

“Guests are protected by means of room orientation, window location, furniture layout, and – at the most exposed face of the building – an impressive cladded screen.”