The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is looking for new, smaller offices in Sydney through a round of potential changes to its national commercial property footprint.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
It is looking at candidates for office space ahead of looming expiry dates for its leases at its Sydney CBD and Parramatta offices.
Tender documents show the ATO is looking for smaller offices in the two commercial centres.
It comes ahead of the expiry of several office leases at multiple locations nationally that could involve a switch to one Canberra office replacing the ATO's Genge Street and Narellan Street offices.
An ATO spokesperson confirmed the agency had recently secured a five-year lease extension at its Burnie, Tasmania office, locking in a major employer for the city of less than 20,000.
However, the spokesperson said no decision had been made about the future of the Hobart office, where the agency's lease expires in September 2022.
The ATO is seeking expressions of interest from commercial property owners with office space in the Sydney CBD and Parramatta.
It currently holds leases at 52 Goulburn Street, Sydney and 2-12 Macquarie Street, Parramatta which expire in October 2022 and June 2023 respectively.
The spokesperson said the ATO leases 23,000 square metres at a Goulburn Street building, where staff occupy 1150 desks.
In Parramatta it leases 28,965 square metres and staff occupy 1616 desks.
However, documents available on Austender show the agency is seeking between 13,000 and 16,000 square metres office space in the Sydney CBD and 16,000 and 19,000 square metres in Parramatta, a significant decrease in office space.
The ATO also subleases parts of its Parramatta office space to other entities.
There has been a push in recent years by government departments and agencies to make more efficient use of leased office space, which appears to be reflected in the number of significant moves for the public sector's second largest workforce.
Of its 22 leased premises, the ATO meets the Finance Department's occupational density target at only three locations.
In addition to the space requirements, the Austender documents show the ATO is seeking a single building with adjoining floors in both locations.
It is seeking 10-year leases in both Sydney and Parramatta with 70 reserved, secure car spaces in Sydney, and 50 in Parramatta.
In 2007, the ATO entered into a $303 million, 15-year contract to lease the Goulburn Street office and an almost $332 million, 16-year contract for the Parramatta office.
The ATO is currently consulting staff about a proposal to close its Geelong office but is yet to make a final decision. Its lease expires in June next year and an announcement about the future of the Geelong site is expected in August.
The ATO has also announced workers at its Chermside, Queensland office will be relocated to its new building on Wharf Street in Brisbane.