Billionaire James Packer has taken his first look at the $2.4billion Crown Resorts Barangaroo site more than a year after he stepped away from the spotlight.
Mr Packer’s mother Roslyn said on Wednesday her son was in a ‘much better place’ than when he resigned from 22 boards – including Crown Resorts – in 2018 for mental health reasons.
‘I think mentally he is in a much better place, which is wonderful,’ she told 7 News.
James Packer’s mother Roslyn said her son is in a ‘better place’ than when he resigned from 22 boards – including Crown Resorts – in mid-2018
Mr Packer, pictured with girlfriend Kylie Lim in 2018, returned to Sydney on Wednesday to inspect his Crown Resort in Barangaroo
‘It shattered him with the employees in China. It shattered all of us.’
In 2016 three Australian Crown Casino employees were arrested in China for illegally promoting gambling, along with 16 Chinese employees.
The three Australian staff were jailed and Crown Resorts paid the $1.67million fine ex gratia.
In March 2018, shortly after Mr Packer resigned from the boards, he checked himself into a $35,000-a-week psychiatric hospital in the United States.
Legal issues in China weren’t the only thing motivating his step away from the spotlight.
Mr Packer delved into the private story behind his mental health journey in his biography, The Price of Fortune: The Untold Story of Being James Packer, written by journalist Damon Kitney.
In 2016, the billionaire felt his life was spiralling out of control as his daily diet consisted of vodka and powerful prescription pills.
As his businesses took serious hits, Mr Packer was pushed into a third nervous breakdown.
By October that year, he began to worry the people around him, with one psychiatrist even asking him: ‘Are you trying to kill yourself?’
In May 2019 Packer sold 19.99 per cent of his Crown Casino shares to Melco Resorts and Entertainment for $1.76billion.
He has since been on the road to recovery.
‘I am happy now to live a quiet life, but I wanted to come back and see the progress at Crown Sydney with my own eyes,’ Mr Packer told Daily Mail Australia.
‘It’s even better than I imagined and again, I am extremely thankful to the workforce who have got us to this point.’
Mr Packer pictured with his mother (left), former wife Erica Baxter (middle right) and sister Gretel (right) in 2008 at the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute
Mr Packer, alongside his girlfriend Kylie Lim and mother, toured Crown Resort’s new site in Barangaroo, Sydney, on Wednesday.
The 52-year-old said ‘it was a special day’ to see the site and provide Sydney with something it ‘deserves’.
‘It’s really pleasing [it will open three months early],’ Mr Packer said.
‘We are truly indebted to our builders, architects and tradies who have made this possible.
‘There are not many building projects this big and complex that are delivered on time and on budget. It’s a credit to the Crown team, Lend Lease the Developers and our architects Wilkinson Ayre.’
The 52-year-old said ‘it was a special day’ to see the Barangaroo project, which he says will provide Sydney with something it ‘deserves’
Crown Resorts Barangaroo is set to open before Christmas 2020 – three months earlier than expected
Mr Packer purchased two floors of the hotel which will be converted into a home and said he plans to spend more time in the city once it is finished.
‘Having this hotel gives Crown three incredible resorts across the country, employing thousands of workers and attracting tourists from across the globe,’ he told Daily Mail Australia.
‘I grew up in Sydney and my kids still spend time here, it’s a beautiful place and I hope to spend more time visiting.’
He said it is clear Barangaroo will be one of the best precincts in the world.