Mr Tosswill told the Otago Daily Times he had employed a team of new consultants, including urban planner Ian Munro, of Auckland, to help reconfigure the project.
The result was a further reduction in the building’s height to 11 storeys above ground at its highest point and a reduction in underground car park levels from three to two, he said.
The vehicle entrance had also been moved to the front of the building, providing more direct access, as part of the "substantially different" design, he said.
The original glazing of the glass tower had also been changed to a "multiple finish", which would be evident when an updated image of the building’s design was released, hopefully soon, he said.
Together, the changes aimed to lower the entire building closer to street level and address concerns raised by some opponents about visual dominance and shading, he said.
"If we can then get consensus on the new revisions ... we will then proceed with it.
"If they again reject it, and we’re not going to get the support, then there’s nothing more we can do and I will be walking away," Mr Tosswill said.
His comments came after he lodged an Environment Court appeal on October 19, weeks after a panel of independent commissioners rejected his bid for consent to build a 17-storey hotel and apartment tower opposite the Dunedin Town Hall.
The hotel, to be built on the Dunedin City Council-owned Filleul St car park, was deemed non-complying under district plan rules and attracted 271 submitters, including 206 opposed to it.
The panel, in rejecting consent, cited "significant" concerns, including height and visual dominance, which would see the building towering over neighbouring heritage buildings and casting a midwinter shadow over the Octagon and neighbouring Kingsgate Hotel.
Mr Tosswill lodged his appeal on October 19 last year, and a two-day mediation hearing involving more than 20 parties — including Mr Tosswill — was scheduled to begin on April 10. When contacted last week, Mr Tosswill predicted the mediation talks would fail, as the project would still face opposition from two rival companies, Millennium & Copthorne and Misbeary
Holdings Ltd.Millennium & Copthorne owns the Kingsgate Hotel, while Misbeary Holdings listed Lani Hagaman, of the Scenic Circle Group, as a director, and both sent lawyers to argue against the development during last year’s consent hearing.
Mr Tosswill, who has previously said the companies were motivated by competing "commercial interests", said his team would mount a legal argument to have both companies excluded from the Environment Court proceedings.
Success could open the door to an agreement with other parties to the appeal, allowing the revised design to proceed, he said.
Otago Chamber of Commerce chief executive Dougal McGowan suggested the latest changes might be acceptable, or could require a fresh consent application.
Another party to the appeal, heritage advocate Peter Entwisle, who opposed the hotel project, said a new design would be essential, but might not be enough to avoid the need for a fresh consent application.
"They [the court] may well just say ‘oh well — go and try to get a consent for that’."
