Sime Darby wins approval for $500m Melbourne CBD apartment tower
Melbourne CBD is set for another 700 apartments, with Malaysian developer Sime Darby Property granted ministerial approval for its mixed-use skyscraper in the heart of the city.
The $500 million project at 382–406 Queen Street will deliver 693 apartments and 900 student accommodation beds above one of the northern CBD's most prominent corners.
Sime Darby paid $115 million for the 3,218 sqm site in 2024, acquiring it from the Lim family, the dynasty behind Singapore construction firm Evan Lim & Co, in what was then the largest CBD development transaction Melbourne had seen since 2019. The site carried a seven-storey car park and a small education centre. Both will be demolished.
The tower, designed by Cox Architecture, splits its residential and student components across a single building. The 693 build-to-sell apartments, 297 studios, 330 one-bedroom and 66 two-bedroom units, occupy the upper floors, while 900 student beds spread across levels 9 to 28. Levels 2 to 6 are allocated to just over 10,000 sqm of office space, with retail on the ground and mezzanine.
A network of open-air laneways and arcades at street level is designed to activate the Queen Street and A'Beckett Street frontages and create pedestrian connections through the site.
Sustainability targets include a 5 Star Green Star Buildings rating, fully electric building operations, and measurable reductions in upfront carbon emissions compared to a reference building. The plans also incorporate rainwater reuse, urban heat island mitigation strategies, and enhanced daylight access across both residential and non-residential spaces.
The site sits at the northern edge of the Hoddle Grid, about 300 metres from Flagstaff station and 250 metres from Melbourne Central. It abuts the Queen Victoria Market precinct, which is mid-way through its own renewal.
Immediately to the south, 3L Alliance completed the first tower of Queens Place. The Melbourne CBD has become popular with developers once again, with Far East Consortium and Sterling Global both recently launching their high-rise buildings.
Joel Robinson
Joel Robinson is the Editor in Chief at Apartments.com.au, where he leads the editorial team and oversees the country’s most comprehensive news coverage dedicated to the off the plan property market. With more than a decade of experience in residential real estate journalism, Joel brings deep insight into Australia’s evolving development landscape.
He holds a degree in Business Management with a major in Journalism from Leeds Beckett University in the UK, and has developed a particular expertise in off the plan apartment space. Joel’s editorial lens spans the full lifecycle of a project, from site acquisition and planning approvals through to new launches, construction completions, and final sell-out, delivering trusted, buyer-focused content that supports informed decision-making across the property journey
