The surrounding buildings range from two to 18 storey apartment buildings. The nine storey development contains ground floor retail and 32 units above totally some 4,500 sq m. The massing fills in the corner and completes the streetscape. The streetscape on the ground floor is activated with retail uses. As the site is extremely tight it is impossible to achieve ramp access to the basement levels. A car loft is used for parking access. The design of the apartments has been influenced by the principles of passive solar design. The majority of units are either corner units, through units or have ventilation slots on the façade to maximise natural ventilation and minimise energy use. The façade lattice screen was originally intended as a structure for a green wall on the entire façade.
This being a prominent gateway corner the designers believed that the building should have a façade of the exceptional quality and design excellence. The façade would become an art installation within the city. They engaged local artist Gary Deirmendjia who started with a cartography of historic Parramatta sites in the vicinity of the site. This was combined with the colonial street grid to produce a matrix of historical sites which evolved into the final design. The resulting façade takes the form of a lattice over the building. This lattice screen is attached to the façade made from powder coated aluminium. The lattice provides protection for glazing. In addition, portions of the lattice are to be in-filled with a bioclimatic green wall which uses reticulated grey water. This creates a double façade which creates a microclimate and enhances thermal stability and minimises energy use.
The result is a gateway building which has a genuinely unique and progressive expression which will be a benchmark for the area and establish the precinct as a focus for design excellence.