Victoria’s economy is continuing to bounce back with more than 1,000 construction jobs set to be created as work kicks off on a new cutting-edge office development that will be home to world-renowned tech company, Amazon.

Minister for Economic Development Tim Pallas today joined Lord Mayor of Melbourne Sally Capp and project partners to turn the first sod on 555 Collins Street, a $1.5 billion project fast tracked by the Andrews Labor Government.

The first tower is expected to create more than 1,500 jobs during construction and accommodate about 4,500 workers once built.

The tower will be anchored by global tech company Amazon, which last year announced that it will open a second fulfilment centre in Victoria to serve its retail customers and develop a new AWS cloud infrastructure region in the state — drawing on our highly skilled people, a culture of innovation and strong tech capabilities.

The entire project will consist of two towers, a total of 84,000sqm of Premium Grade office space and over 2,300sqm of retail across two stages, featuring world-leading tech-enabled environments, and health and wellness facilities.

The 555 Collins St project is the result of a collaboration between fund manager Charter Hall as the owner and developer, Cox Architecture, global design practice Gensler, and Lendlease Constructions.

It secured planning approval from the Labor Government under its Building Recovery Taskforce in May 2020, which was established to identify and accelerate shovel-ready priority projects.

The Taskforce has fast tracked more than $1.2 billion worth of building and development projects to boost Victoria’s economy and create more Victorian jobs.