Business as usual for Lend Lease

Business as usual for Lend Lease

By Bethany Williams

Lend Lease is close to securing rights to develop the last uncontracted land parcel in Docklands, despite being banned from bidding for government contracts.

The parcel of land is a two-hectare site with a Collins St address, air rights over Wurundjeri Way and Flinders St frontage. The site is currently home to Bunjil.

It had been widely reported that Lend Lease would be banned from bidding for government contracts due to a four-year deal it struck with the Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) last year.

The deal violated the Baillieu government’s updated building industry code, which took effect from July, 2012.

The updated code has widely been considered an attempt to stamp out union-friendly deals within the Victorian construction industry.

In July 2011 the State Government announced that Lend Lease was amongst four development companies shortlisted for the Collins St contract.

Docklands News understands Lend Lease is now the frontrunner in the bidding process and is in the final stages of contract negotiations with Places Victoria.

It is understood that Lend Lease is still eligible for the contract because the bidding process started in February 2011, which was well before the new building industry code was introduced.

Additionally, Lend Lease is being secured as a developer and it is understood that violations of the code would only be an issue if Lend Lease’s building contractors were in breach.

According to a Lend Lease spokesperson, the code violation has not affected Lend Lease’s work in Docklands.

The spokesperson said it was “business as usual”.

Lend Lease subsidiary Baulderstone is currently building the new City West police complex on the corner of Spencer and LaTrobe Streets.

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