An almost half-a-century-old building on Queen Street in Brisbane may be the subject of a major transformation.
Built in 1974, the 22-storey skyscraper sits on a 1,700-sqm site at 444 Queen Street. PGIM Australia has revealed plans for an adaptive reuse of the “outdated” building, positioned just outside the highly sought-after Golden Triangle and directly opposite the Customs House, which it recently acquired for $54.4 million
Designed by Fender Katsalidis, the proposed 24-storey development aims to breathe new life to the existing structure with an A-grade standard design and a 5-star Green Star rating.
The Urban Context report describes the proposal as “minimal in its impact on site and context”. It furthered that revitalisation will focus on enhancing the “appearance of the building within the streetscape” and providing a contemporary and highly sustainable boutique office.
The plans thus involve replacing the existing rundown facade of the building with a modern, high-performance facade; reinforcing the existing structure; removing the end-of-life cycle plant and equipment, and revitalising the ground plane and podium.
The proposed ground floor plan will include a lobby, a cafe space and business lounge. There will also be two levels of podium car parking containing 52 car parking spaces as well as 21 storeys of leasable office space, including a lower and an upper roof terrace.
The basement level will have a new end-of-trip facility which will be accessible via the rear of the subject building. The EOT facility will contain 157 bicycle spaces, 224 lockers and 12 showers (split between male and female).
“By re-purposing out-dated stock, we can provide an economical and environmental approach to our commercial building assets,” says the Urban Context report on the rationale behind the plan to refurbish instead of demolishing the building for a new one.
