QV1

{{Short description|40-storey modernist skyscraper in Perth, Western Australia}} {{Use Australian English |date=January 2025}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2020}} {{Infobox building | name = QV1 | image = QV1.jpg | image_size = 180px | caption = QV1 tower | location = 250 St Georges Tce,<br/>Perth, Western Australia | coordinates = {{coord|31|57|8.55|S|115|51|3.33|E|display=inline,title}} | current_tenants = Allens<br/>BP<br/>Chevron Corporation<br/>Clayton Utz<br/>Herbert Smith Freehills<br/>King & Wood Mallesons<br/>WorleyParsons<br/>CBRE<br/>Sonic HealthPlus | construction_start_date = 1988 | completion_date = 1991 | building_type = Office tower | architectural_style = Modernist | antenna_spire = | roof = {{cvt|163|m}} | top_floor = | floor_count = 40 (38 tenantable) | elevator_count = | cost = | floor_area = {{ubli| {{cvt|59566|m2}} (tower only) }} | architect = Harry Seidler & Associates | structural_engineer = | main_contractor = | developer = Barrack Properties, Kajima Corporation & Interstruct | owner = {{ubli |Eureka Funds Management (50%) |Investa Property Group (50%) }} | operator = CBRE | references = <ref name="Hooper"/><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ndy.com/projects/projectdetail.asp?sn=Australia&proj=qv1building.xml&sec=tallbuildings&show=1 |title=QV1 Building – Perth |access-date=12 November 2008 |publisher=Norman Disney & Young |archive-date=20 July 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080720001225/http://www.ndy.com/projects/projectdetail.asp?sn=Australia&proj=qv1building.xml&sec=tallbuildings&show=1 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="Emporis"/> | website = {{URL| https://qv1.com.au/}} }} thumb|right|The tower's windows feature extensive use of sun shading. thumb|right|The Plaza buildings were designed to have "free, curvilinear shapes" to balance the "precise geometric form" of the tower.<ref name="Seidler"/>

'''QV1''' is a 40-storey modernist skyscraper in Perth, Western Australia. Completed in 1991, the {{convert|163|m|ft|adj=on}} building is the fourth-tallest building in Perth, after Central Park, Brookfield Place and 108 St Georges Terrace. The project was designed by architect Harry Seidler & Associates and has won numerous awards for its innovative design and energy efficiency.<ref name="Awards">{{Cite web |url=http://www.qv1perth.com.au/Core/Content/Awards/Content935.aspx |title=QV.1 – Awards |access-date=12 November 2008 |publisher=QV.1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090214120728/http://www.qv1perth.com.au/Core/Content/Awards/Content935.aspx |archive-date=14 February 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Site and construction history== The property, which fronts St Georges Terrace, Hay Street and a whole block on Milligan Street, was home to various buildings, including two 11-storey buildings<ref name="Emporis">{{Cite web|url=http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=qv1tower-perth-australia |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070211194439/http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=qv1tower-perth-australia |url-status=usurped |archive-date=11 February 2007 |title=QV1 Tower, Perth |access-date=12 November 2008 |publisher=Emporis }}</ref> and, at the corner of Hay and Milligan Streets, the first Fast Eddys burger bar.<ref name="Feddies"/> thumb Planning for the redevelopment began in the second half of the 1980s, with the design done by Harry Seidler & Associates. The site fell partially within the boundaries of the statutory Parliamentary Precinct, which limited skyscraper heights near Parliament House. The Environmental Committee of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects (WA Branch) recommended that the requirements for the precinct be amended to allow the development to take place.<ref>{{Cite news|author=Ron Bodycoat & Peter Parkinson |title=Police – Environmental Committee |work=The Architect (Western Australia) |page=11 |volume=28 |issue=2 }}</ref> The tower was named "Q.V.1" after the Latin phrase {{lang |la |Quo vadis}} (meaning "where are you going?").<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.perthvista.com/QV1-building.html |title=Perth Vista – QV1 Building |access-date=12 November 2008 |year=2008 |publisher=GlobeVista |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131008163223/http://www.perthvista.com/QV1-building.html |archive-date=8 October 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

With the plans finalised and approved, the site was purchased in 1989 for $30 million by a joint venture between Barrack Properties (50% share), Kajima Corporation (30%) and Interstruct (20%).<ref name="Hooper">{{Cite news|first=Matthew |last=Hooper |title=Property: QV1 |work=Business News|publisher=Business News Pty Ltd |date=15 April 2004 }}</ref> The purchase also included a site across Hay Street, which would be turned into a 4.5-storey car park for the development.<ref name="Seidler">{{Cite news|first=Harry |last=Seidler |author-link=Harry Seidler |title=QV1 |work=The Architect (Western Australia) |publisher=Australian Institute of Architects|pages=32&ndash;35 |date=Summer 1987 }}</ref> The owners of the Fast Eddys restaurant had wanted to incorporate this restaurant into the new development, however they accepted a $5.2 million offer from the developers, and instead moved the restaurant to the corner of Murray and Milligan streets.<ref name="Feddies">{{Cite news|first=Gavin |last=Fang |title=Dress Circle |work=The West Australian |page=60 |date=11 September 1996 |quote=Back in 1988, Mr Somas was eager to keep the burgers cooking in the proposed QV1 complex. But, a $5.2 million sweetener from the developers was enough to encourage a move down the road.}}</ref>

Finance on the tower had been made possible by a put option granted by BT Property Trust and the New South Wales State Superannuation Board, whereby for an estimated fee of $20 million they agreed to buy the tower upon completion for $340 million if the option was exercised.<ref name="Put">{{Cite news|first=Colleen |last=Ryan |title=Institutions caught in QV1 put option |work=Sydney Morning Herald |page=31 |date=22 August 1991 }}</ref> However, during construction of the tower, Perth property prices suffered a major collapse as demand for office space slumped.<ref name="Put"/> In August 1991, just six weeks out from completion, the building did not have a single tenant, and was regarded as one of the great white elephants of the Australian property scene.<ref name="Put"/> The owners exercised the option in 1991 upon completion of the project, handing joint ownership to the New South Wales Superannuation Board and BT Property Trust.<ref name="Hooper"/>

==Post-completion== After QV1's opening in 1991, Perth's office vacancy rate hit a high of 73.6% in 1993. However, by 1996 the tower was fully leased and in June 1998 remained the only premium-grade office tower in the city to be fully leased.<ref>{{Cite news|first=Monica |last=Videnieks |title=Perth business core moves west |work=The Australian |page=39 |date=12 June 1998 }}</ref>

When the tower was completed, some suggested the tower was too far west in the central business district.<ref name="West">{{Cite news|first=Marsha |last=Jacobs |title='West end' fast becoming the centre of action in the city |work=WA Business News |publisher=Business News Pty Ltd |date=23 February 2006 |quote="When they built QV1, everyone thought it was so far west, but now that part of town is absolutely where people want to be, and the vacancy rate in that part of town is negligible", Mr Denny said. "The western end of the CBD is the resources heart of town, with Chevron, Woodside, BHP, Apache and several major engineering firms also located there". }}</ref> However, the securing of WAPET (now Chevron Australia) as a tenant in QV1 was regarded as a turning point for the precinct, and helped to establish the west end of the CBD as a resources sector.<ref name="West"/><ref>{{Cite news|first=Ruth |last=Callaghan |title=West Draws Them In |work=The West Australian |page=65 |date=2 July 1997 |quote=Graham Postma from Colliers Jardine said the construction of QV1 in the early 1990s was the turning point for the precinct. "When QV1 secured WAPET as a tenant it became the resource centre of the market, and began drawing away the resource companies from Adelaide Terrace," Mr Postma said. }}</ref>

For many years the roof of the building has been used as a base from which to launch fireworks shells in the city's annual City of Perth Skyworks fireworks display on Australia Day.<ref>{{Cite news|first=Catherine |last=Fitzpatrick |title=Police Warn About Drink at Skyworks |work=The West Australian |page=3 |date=25 January 1997 |quote=Pyrotechnician Syd Howard said the shells also would be set off from the top of QV1 and Allendale Square and barges on the Swan River – as in previous years – during the 45-minute show. }}</ref> Also, following the death of the tower's architect Harry Seidler on 9 March 2006, a powerful light was temporarily installed on the roof of QV1 to shine a beam into the sky as a memorial.<ref>{{Cite news|first=Michael |last=Weir |title=Herd on the Terrace |work=The West Australian |page=58 |date=15 March 2006 |quote=Night owls might have noticed a powerful beam of light shooting skyward from the roof of city tower QV1 in recent days. Apparently it's been put in place as a temporary memorial for world-renowned architect Harry Seidler, the building's designer, who died last week.}}</ref>

The BTA Property Trust sold its half-stake in the building in 1998 to corporate stablemate BT Office Trust for $130.6 million.<ref name="Hooper"/> In 2003 that half-stake was acquired by Investa Property Group,<ref name="Hooper"/> which in 2006 valued QV1 at $400 million.<ref>{{Cite news|author=Staff writer |title=QV1 now worth $400m |work=The West Australian |page=39 |date=5 May 2006 }}</ref> The other 50% is owned by Eureka Funds Management.

==Design== According to architect Harry Seidler, one of the architectural objectives in the design of QV1 was to minimise the impact of the tower when viewed from Parliament House, and this was addressed by offering a narrow profile to that direction.<ref name="Seidler"/> This was necessary to secure government approval for the construction of the tower within the Parliamentary Precinct. To this end, none of the building's facades point directly towards the Parliament building. On the northern side of the site is a two-level retail plaza that originally featured an artificial waterfall and pond.<ref name="Seidler"/> The waterfall has since been removed and the size of the pond reduced substantially.<ref>{{Citation |last=-wuppertaler |title=Deutsch: Im Central Business District, Perth, Western Australia, Australien. |date=2023-02-12 |url=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:AUS_Perth,_Central_Business_District,_Hay_Street_009.jpg |access-date=2025-04-30}}</ref>

Another of the design briefs identified by Harry Seidler was that the building should employ passive design in order to minimise energy costs.<ref name="Seidler"/> This is achieved through the use of tinted double glazed windows, as well as the installation alongside windows of horizontal and vertical sun shades.<ref name="Seidler"/> The use of sun shades alone was estimated to reduce the building's cooling costs by $70,000 per year.<ref name="Change">{{Cite news|first=Dawn |last=Gibson |title=Architects Told To Design With Change in Mind |work=The West Australian |page=56 |date=18 October 2000 |quote=Completed in 1991 and designed by Harry Seidler, the building was one of the first in Perth to install separate air-conditioning units on each floor so the system does not have to run on all floors all the time. Sunshading is estimated to save around $70,000 a year in power bills, which are reduced even further by energy efficient lighting. }}</ref> The building also features separate air-conditioning units for each floor, so that energy does not need to be wasted cooling or heating unoccupied floors.<ref name="Change"/> This can lead to substantial energy savings because in Perth's warm climate cooling costs can account for 60 to 70% of total building energy consumption.<ref name="Gibson">{{Cite news|first=Dawn |last=Gibson |title=Buildings to get green ratings |work=The West Australian |date=18 September 2002 |quote=In Perth, the balmy climate means air-conditioning accounts for 60 to 70 per cent of energy consumption in commercial buildings, so ensuring systems are well-maintained and the temperature is being properly controlled can make a big difference. }}</ref>

The tower has a reinforced concrete core, measuring {{convert|21.5|m|ft}} on each side, which bears lateral forces including wind loading.<ref name="Features">{{Cite web |url=http://www.qv1perth.com.au/Core/Content/Features/Content933.aspx |title=QV.1 – Features |publisher=QV.1 |access-date=12 November 2008 |archive-date=14 February 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090214120301/http://qv1perth.com.au/Core/Content/Features/Content933.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref> The perimeter of the building features reinforced concrete<ref name="Seidler"/> support columns spaced {{convert|7.3|m|ft}} apart, and there are no internal columns within floors.<ref name="Features"/> The perimeter columns and the core support {{convert|14.3|m|ft|adj=on}} clear span post-tensioned beams {{convert|3.6|m|ft}} apart, with concrete slabs spanning between them.<ref name="Seidler"/> These beams are terminated slightly short so that they can be used as mechanical ducts.<ref name="Seidler"/> Some floors feature landscaped balcony gardens on their south faces,<ref>{{Cite book|title=Corporate Construction & Design Yearbook |volume=4 |issue=1 |year=1993 |publisher=Corporate Media Group |location=South Perth |page=175 |ref=CCD }}</ref> and the top floors feature two tiers of luxurious penthouse offices with landscaped terraces.<ref name="Seidler"/>

The main entrance to QV1 from St Georges Terrace features a set of stone-clad hyperboloid supports that carry the loads of the two perimeter columns which terminate above them on the third floor.<ref name="Seidler"/> The lowest two office floors are mezzanines so that the ceiling in the lobby is an imposing {{convert|14|m|ft}} high.<ref name="Seidler"/> The St Georges Terrace entrance is also protected from the elements by a flowing {{convert|50|m|ft|adj=on}} suspended glass canopy.<ref name="Seidler"/> The building is clad with polished granite.<ref name="Seidler"/>

The modernist building was criticised for being "Perth's most ugly building" and "a giant Lego block", but architect Harry Seidler described QV1 as "the best building he had ever built".<ref>{{Cite news|first=Suzannah |last=James |title=Architect's modernist designs stirred up controversy |work=The West Australian |page=9 |date=10 March 2006 |quote=While some at the time derided the 37-storey QV1 as Perth's most ugly building and a giant Lego block, Mr Seidler said it was the best building he had ever built. He designed it to focus on the Swan River and not the other buildings in St Georges Terrace, which he called boring, parochial boxes. }}</ref>

==Awards== Awards which have been won by QV1 include:

* 1992 Royal Australian Institute of Architects (WA) Architecture Design Award &ndash; Commercial buildings over $200 million<ref name="Awards"/> * 1992 Royal Australian Institute of Architects (WA) Commendation &ndash; Civic Design Award for Commercial Buildings<ref name="Awards"/> * 1992 Royal Australian Institute of Architects (National) &ndash; Best design for a commercial building (over $200 million)<ref name="Awards"/> * 1992 Master Builders Association of Australia &ndash; Best workmanship for a building (over $200 million)<ref name="Awards"/> * 1999 Master Builders Association of Australia &ndash; National Energy Efficiency Award for Commercial Buildings (joint winner with Stadium Australia)<ref>{{Cite news|first=Melissa |last=Stevens |title=QV1 Tower Ties For Energy Use Award |work=The West Australian |page=70 |date=27 October 1999 |quote=Perth's QV1 office tower has tied with Stadium Australia for the commercial category of the Master Builders Association National Energy Efficiency Awards. }}</ref> * 2019 Richard Roach Jewell Award for Enduring Architecture<ref>{{Cite web |date=29 June 2019 |title=2019 WA Architecture Awards |url=https://architectureau.com/articles/2019-wa-architecture-awards/ |access-date=14 January 2024 |website=ArchitectureAU.com}}</ref>

==See also== *List of tallest buildings in Perth *List of tallest buildings in Australia

==References== {{Reflist|30em}}

==External links== {{Commons category|QV1}} * [https://qv1.com.au/ QV.1 Official site] * {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20070211194439/http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=qv1tower-perth-australia Emporis page on QV.1]}} * [http://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=1263 SkyscraperPage page on QV.1] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100205085211/http://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=1263 |date=5 February 2010 }} * [http://henrietta.liswa.wa.gov.au/search~S6?/dqv1/dqv1/-3%2C0%2C0%2CB/frameset&FF=dqv++++1+perth+w+a+design+and+construction+photographs&1%2C1%2C/indexsort=- State Library of Western Australia] &ndash; photograph of the building under construction

{{Perth skyscrapers}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Qv.1}} Category:Harry Seidler buildings Category:St Georges Terrace Category:Hay Street, Perth Category:1991 establishments in Australia Category:Skyscraper office buildings in Perth, Western Australia Category:Retail buildings in Western Australia Category:Office buildings completed in 1991