Newcastle City Council’s future administration digs on Stewart Avenue reached it’s high point on Thursday and the construction milestone was marked with a seal from council leaders.
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Chief executive Jeremy Bath and lord mayor Nuatali Nelmes signed a top-floor pillar of the building to mark the topping out of the site.
The pair spoke of the significance of the move as part of realising long-term planning for the city and how the shift opens up their current CBD buildings for a range of potential uses.
They also revealed how the new administration building will feature a rooftop terrace capable of holding community-run events.
The open-air space, which takes up half of the top floor, has been designed predominately as an area for staff collaboration but could be used for externally-run functions.
“It’s an exciting project for council staff that have been in pretty run-down accommodation for a long time,” Cr Nelmes said on Thursday.
Cr Nelmes said the building will help council “broaden the pool of talent” it can attract for potential employment.
“We’re in a phase of growth for Newcastle and it’s a really exciting time,” she said.
“We want to make sure that growth is maintained and that economic prosperity is passed on to as many people in the community as possible, and we actually have the best and brightest wanting to not only stay in Newcastle, but live and work here.”
The leased office space will be ready in early 2019 and house 400 council workers.
Council revealed the administration move to the Stewart Avenue site in December after striking a 15-year lease on the 5550 square metre office space.
Newcastle City Council CEO Jeremy Bath said at the time the move would save $14,000 each year per staff member by uniting four separate offices in one building.
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