Melrose Central — Melrose Park North

A large-scale urban renewal project needed granular cost certainty before going to market. The challenge wasn’t just producing a number — it was producing a number the whole project team could build a business case on.

The Brief

A detailed pre-tender cost plan was prepared for the Melrose Park North development at 33 Hope Street, NSW — a high-density mixed-use precinct forming part of a broader master planned urban renewal. The brief called for line-by-line cost modelling across both residential and integrated mixed-use components, capturing the full scope of the development ahead of construction commencement.

Pre-tender cost plans are the critical bridge between design intent and procurement. For a precinct of this complexity, getting that number right the first time directly affects the project’s ability to attract finance, proceed to tender, and hit feasibility targets.

The Challenge

High-density mixed-use precincts present unique costing challenges: residential towers, podium retail, shared basement structures, communal amenity, and staging interfaces all need to be tracked and modelled independently before being reconciled into a coherent whole. With multiple design consultants contributing documentation, ensuring the cost plan captured the full scope without gaps or double-counting required careful coordination.

Our Approach

MCG prepared a granular elemental cost plan covering all components of the Melrose Park North development — structuring the estimate to allow clear interrogation by asset type, stage, and building element. Residential towers, integrated mixed-use ground-floor components, and shared infrastructure were each modelled separately and then reconciled at a precinct level.

Benchmarks were drawn from comparable recent high-density projects in the Sydney metropolitan area, with adjustments applied for site-specific constraints and current market conditions. The outcome gave the development team a single, reliable cost reference ahead of the tender process.

The Outcome

A detailed pre-tender cost plan delivering granular, line-by-line cost intelligence across the full Melrose Park North development — supporting accurate budgeting, improved financial clarity, and informed decision-making for a significant urban renewal precinct ahead of procurement.