To spot Central Park, just look skyward directly ahead-it’s the tallest glass-and-steel skyscraper around, with sharp angles, silvery cladding, and a pointed communication mast at its peak.
As you stand here, tilt your head back and prepare for a little neck exercise-this isn’t just any building; this is Perth’s tallest, rising an astonishing 226 meters to the roof or a gut-twisting 249 meters if you count that communications mast! Imagine St Georges Terrace buzzing with shoppers back in the 1930s, when this spot was home to Foy & Gibson’s grand department store-a place packed with the latest fashions and the hum of a popular cafeteria. Later, David Jones took over, and for decades, window displays stretched as far as the eye could see, tempting passersby with every conceivable delight.
But by the late 1970s, the glamour faded and the giant store sat empty, waiting for someone to dream big. And oh boy, did developers dream! When the plan for Central Park was unveiled in 1985, it wasn’t just any plan. City council meetings became more dramatic than your favorite soap opera. Imagine city officials and developers in heated debate, voices bouncing off the walls like tennis balls: could this city handle such a mammoth tower-and a carpark to match? The council’s own experts warned that traffic could back up all the way to King Street-imagine the sound of impatient car horns echoing down the terrace-. In the end, after a nerve-wracking vote, planning concessions meant the developers could add more than half the tower’s height above what would have been allowed. That’s like winning several bonus rounds in a game of “Perth Monopoly.”
Once the drama cooled, construction began in 1988-but this was no ordinary build. Instead of clattering together every floor the old-fashioned way, engineers pre-cast massive concrete floor slabs offsite and simply slotted them into place at dizzying heights. Even the bathrooms arrived nearly ready-made, shipped in as sealed modules. Picture that: a convoy of bathrooms, all neatly wrapped like Christmas presents!
By 1992, the communications mast reached skyward, the last piece of the puzzle in place. Tenants started moving in-the accounting firm BDO Nelson Parkhill first, followed by major names like Ernst & Young. Down at the base, a newly landscaped park-a lush green pocket among the city’s hard edges-unfurled as a breathing space for everyone below. Note the clever design: multiple “setbacks” or tiers help the building catch the wind without swaying too much. Even so, imagine being on the top floors during a storm: the wind could shimmy the building up to 30 centimeters side to side, just enough to make your morning coffee feel like an amusement park ride.
Of course, it hasn’t all been smooth sailing-or washing. With 5,000 sheets of glass, it can take window cleaners up to three months to circle the building once, up and down, over and over, battling Perth’s famous winds. And if you hear rumors about a “race to the top,” they’re true! Since 2001, people have sprinted up all 53 flights in an annual charity stair climb. Now that’s one way to skip leg day at the gym.
There have been some wild moments-like when a gale in 1999 dislodged canopy domes, sending bits tumbling and closing entrances for days. Legal battles followed, because even skyscrapers can end up in hot water. In fact, from the earliest department store days, through the controversies and architectural “firsts,” to its present role as a home for giants like Rio Tinto and WeWork, Central Park has always been a centrepiece for the city-tall, proud, and never short on stories.
So, as you gaze up and squint at the shimmering glass, just remember: the green pocket at your feet and this mountain of steel and glass above were once the subject of fierce debates, bold dreams, and more than a few traffic jams. Amazing what can grow from a patch of empty land, isn’t it?
