Circular Quay, Bennelong Apartments

A water taxi zooms past the Bennelong Apartments, located on Bennelong Point at East Circular Quay. The apartments were completed in 2003 and earned the nicknamed 'The Toaster' during construction due to their uninspiring design, likened to a kitchen appliance. The site was once home to wool and bond stores which were replaced by office buildings in the 1950s. The current apartment development was surrounded by a lot of controversy during planning and construction. Firstly because Sydneysiders preferred the views of Royal Botanical Gardens created when the office buildings were demolished and secondly because the new development blocked views of the Opera House from the ferry wharves and railway station at the quay. Some of the controversy has somewhat dissipated in recent years with the opening of the boutiques, shops, cinema, bars, indoor and outdoor restaurants, the colonnade and broad walkway along the shore from the quay to the opera house.

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