Australian real estate group Altus Property Group has just officially announced the Trump International Hotel & Tower project with the goal of setting a record for the tallest building in the country. The project is expected to reach a height of 335m, located in an empty lot right in the center of the bustling Surfers Paradise tourist strip.
According to the design, the project will be a super-luxury complex including a 6-star hotel with 285 rooms, a high-class retail square, a Michelin-starred restaurant system and luxury apartments completed according to Trump Group's strict standards.
However, this ambitious project is facing opposition from the local community even when it was still on the drawings.
On the afternoon of February 24, an online petition requesting the Gold Coast city government to reject this plan attracted more than 26,000 signatures. Many residents expressed concern that the presence of the Trump brand would bring deep social divisions and negatively affect Australia's inherent peaceful image.
In the opposite direction, Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate enthusiastically supported the project after having a private dinner with Mr. Trump at his mansion in Florida. Mr. Tate highly appreciated the quality and scale of the project, considering it a new architectural symbol that helps elevate the city's tourism position.
Local authorities believe that the tower will bring in huge investment capital and create thousands of new jobs for people. Especially, in the context that Queensland is preparing for the 2032 Summer Olympics, the addition of world-class accommodation facilities is considered a strategic preparation step for tourism infrastructure to welcome international visitors.
Economically, apartments at the Trump Tower are forecast to have a starting price of 3.26 million USD. Real estate experts assess this as a record price but completely feasible due to the attraction of international brands and expensive views of the Pacific.
The project is the result of nearly two decades of persistent negotiations between Australian contractors and Mr. Trump's family, starting with efforts to approach Ivanka Trump in 2007. The final official agreement was signed with Eric Trump in mid-February this year, marking a major turning point for the high-end real estate market in Australia.
Although the construction permit application has not been officially approved, the heat of the project has covered all newspapers in Australia. Investors are still closely monitoring legal progress, while the opposition side has announced that it will continue to promote petition activities to protect community space.
The result of this confrontation between economic interests and political views will be proof of the influence of the Trump brand on the international market during Donald Trump's second term at the White House.
