Monocle magazine praises Frasers-Sekisui House Central Park, Sydney complex, although Sydney's global city status lags behind Melbourne

The latest edition of the international magazine Monocle has praised the upcoming “sophisticated” “uber-green” Frasers-Sekisui House Central Park complex.

“Central Park, a mixed-use district of vertical gardens, shopping and residential buildings in the heart of downtown,…  [is] lending credence to Sydney’s claim to be the southern hemisphere’s most cosmopolitan city."

Despite the selective praise Sydney eased from seventh to eighth place on Monocle’s list of the world's 25 most liveable cities.

It was 12th place in the 2010 list.

There was a critical comment of the inner city, with the magazine saying Sydney needed a convenient, safer cycling network linking central Sydney and surrounding suburbs that would make cycling a "viable alternative."

The Quality of Life Survey devised by Monocle magazine ranks cities on liveability and lovability – an index that gives more weight to creative and efficient solutions than other measures.

Finnish capital Helsinki come out on top last year, but this year it was Zurich as number one, then Helsinki, Copenhagen, Vienna and Munich.

Melbourne is still ranked above Sydney in sixth spot, because of its unique charm and vibrant arts community, albeit down one spot from fifth in 2011, as it “needs to sort out its traffic congestion.”

Lend Lease’s Convesso Concavo is pinpointed by the magazine as a key residential development.

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