‘One of the icons of Australia’: Sydney property billionaire Lang Walker dies

Sydney billionaire and philanthropist Lang Walker, who built a property empire across Australia and played a role in reshaping parts of the country’s largest cities, has died, aged 78.

Walker co-founded a small firm with his father six decades ago, going on to become the country’s largest private property corporation. Developments ranged from high-rise office buildings in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide to suburban housing estates.

Billionaire property developer Lang Walker.Credit: Edwina Pickles

Family members said they were mourning the loss of a devoted and loving husband, father and grandfather, after he died peacefully at his home in Sydney on Saturday evening.

“Lang loved creating incredible places where people can live and work, but he loved his family more than anything else in the world and his generosity and affection had no boundaries,” they said in a statement.

“Our hearts are broken by the loss of a great man who changed the lives of so many people through his visionary projects and philanthropy. His zest for life and his relentless pursuit of perfection lives on within everyone in the Walker family.”

Billionaire pub baron Bruce Mathieson said Walker was one of the greatest businessmen in the country, describing him as “one of the icons of Australia”.

“I’ve always admired him and his long-term vision,” he said.

Lang Walker in 2021, at one of his major developments in South Australia.Credit: Ben Searcy

Mathieson said Walker’s legacy would be his foresight and the businesses that followed his lead.

“All his developments will be there forever,” he said. “You’ve got to have blokes like that who create things, and then other people follow. The bloke who does it first off is the bloke who should get the kudos, and he deserves every bit he gets.”

His projects played a significant role in reshaping parts of Sydney, his home town. In the 1990s, his company delivered the well-known Kings Street Wharf complex near what has since become Barangaroo, as well as the heritage-listed Finger Wharf at Woolloomooloo where he lived.

The Finger Wharf at Woolloomooloo in central Sydney where Lang Walker lived.Credit: James Alcock

NSW Premier Chris Minns said Walker transformed a humble family firm into a company whose name and work was recognised internationally.

“From King Street Wharf to Parramatta Square, his enormous legacy can be seen across NSW,” he said. “Thank you, Lang Walker, for your contribution to our city and our state. Our thoughts are with his loved ones at this time.”

Walker was ranked 16th on the Australian Financial Review’s rich list last year with an estimated wealth of $5.81 billion. In 2015, he was awarded an Order of Australia for his philanthropy and service to the community and commerce.

He was renowned for taking big calls on the direction of the property market and backing his judgment, a strategy that helped cement his business and wealth.

Lang and wife Sue Walker at his exclusive Fiji resort in 2019.Credit: Louie Douvis

His company developed the $3.2 billion Parramatta Square precinct, and has also been behind Western Sydney University’s new $340 million Bankstown campus, the vast Collins Square precinct in Melbourne’s Docklands and the $2.5 billion Maroochydore City Centre on the Sunshine Coast.

Walker Group chief executive David Gallant said the businessman had been recognised and regarded as a great visionary, an inspirational leader, and the first to creatively tackle the challenge of urban transformation.

“Lang’s vision will remain an enduring force through the Walker DNA and the Walker Way which he actively passed on – it is embedded in our culture and our modus operandi,” he said.

Walker and his father Alec founded A&L Walker in 1964, specialising in earthmoving, excavation and quarrying. They later moved into residential property and their fast-growing company was renamed Walker Corporation in 1973, branching into the development of apartments, industrial parks and commercial centres in Sydney.

The property industry paid tribute to Walker for leaving “an indelible mark on the urban landscape” of Australia’s two largest cities.

Urban Taskforce chief executive Tom Forrest said the nation had lost a great leader and innovator. “Every Walker development pushes the boundaries of quality and design while raising the benchmark when it comes to development,” he said.

In a joint statement, Business NSW and Business Western Sydney said Walker was a titan in the Australian business community and a visionary leader whose contributions had left an indelible mark on the nation’s landscape.

“Lang Walker revolutionised the property development industry, shaping skylines and transforming urban landscapes across the country,” they said.

The businessman joined the board of the Powerhouse Museum several years ago during a time of significant upheaval for the Sydney arts institution.

He is survived by his wife Sue, children Blake, Chad, Georgia and their spouses, and his 10 grandchildren.

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