A new planning application has been submitted to the Brisbane City Council this month for a proposed mixed-use building in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane.
Developer Pellegrino Group Australia propose the development, “The Eminence at 89 McLachlan”, will provide A-grade commercial offerings for small to medium tenants.
The development site at 91 McLachlan Street was purchased by the Pellegrino Group for $2.5 million in 2014.
The building, located at 89-91 McLachlan Street, will rise to six-storeys, accommodating for office-related needs on every level except the ground floor, which will be used for reception, retail and food and drink outlets.
The 1,237 square metre site will result in a total Gross Floor Area of approximately 4,564 square metres.
According to the proposal, the building will consist of three basement levels which will accommodate 47 car parking spaces, eight motorcycle spaces and 25 bicycle spaces.
The Shift From Residential To Commercial
Pellegrino’s original proposal for the Fortitude Valley site was a residential development. The developers believe there is a glaring need for office space in the area.
Original 9-storey development proposal.
“The philosophy behind The Eminence is to provide an A-grade, environmentally sustainable building in a smaller format than what we are generally seeing in the office market,” Pellegrino Group Director Paul Pellegrino said.
“The majority of earmarked developments or recently completed ones are much larger, they require substantial pre-commitments and generally don’t cater to small and medium sized businesses.
“We saw this as an opportunity to provide an exemplar building catering to this gap in the market.
“We originally purchased one of the lots in the site for a commercial building, shortly after we obtained our DA the site next door was offered to us which we purchased and decided to do a residential scheme.
“On obtaining the DA for the residential scheme we were deterred by the amount of stock that was available in the market and potential unfavourable conditions so decided to be patient. The site is prime for a commercial building and over the past six months we have been encouraged by positive conditions in the Urban Renewal Precinct and hence gained more comfort to release a high quality ‘A’ grade building in the valley,” he said.
Through accommodating tenancies of 300 – 4,000 square metres, the development distinguishes itself from the majority of upcoming office buildings in the CBD which are generally greater than 1,500 m2in size and by virtue of their size, occupied by large companies, according to the proposal.
Outdoor Spaces
The Eminence will provide a large sky terrace for the building occupants’ use, as well as the ability to support solar panels and rainwater harvesting.
“The terrace has been designed to encourage multiple forms of uses throughout various times of the day,” the proposal said.
“The terrace will be significantly landscaped, provide shade, and encourage occupants to remain active within their own building.
“The sky terrace provides various informal spaces to be used by the building occupants for meals, relaxation, yoga and Pilates, informal break out, meetings, collaborative working and functions.”
Each commercial floor also contains two balcony spaces, which provide external break-out and informal gathering spaces for the occupants of the commercial floors. The balconies sit within a vegetated zone, shaded and screened from the elements by the perforated metal screen and vertical and horizontal planting.
“Openings in the screen at the balconies allow users to enjoy city and district views,” the proposal said.
“The balconies also contribute to the ‘recreational garden eco-system’ and to the public realm. Whilst the general public cannot access these spaces, the vegetated balconies activate the building’s edges and this activity and vegetation are visible from the public realm.”
The site is located only 150 metres away from established James Street but also in the gateway to the CBD and Brunswick Street precinct.
“McLachlan Street has great future expansion potential,” Mr Pellegrino said.
“We believe the building fits perfectly into the current context of great residential density which today is important to employers to be located close to where their staff reside.
“Further to that the Valley provides an immense amount of amenity for occupants in the building, with James street for eateries, boutique shopping and nightlife (after work of course), great access via a signalised intersection feeding all part of Brisbane conveniently and the train station within a short walk.”
Originally Published: www.theurbandeveloper.com
