Sydney’s Fortis Again Aims Higher at Newstead

Sydney-based Fortis’ vision for an inner Brisbane site is growing higher with a third application filed, this time for a 22-storey tower.

The developer on June 26 filed the application for 12 Kyabra Street after previously being approved for an 11-storey and then a 13-storey tower on the 921sq m parcel.

The latest plans filed with the Brisbane City Council comprise 65 apartments in two and three-bedroom configurations, a lobby with retail space and a three-level underground carpark.

Fortis acquired the former factory site, later a boxing gym that was destroyed by fire in July 2019, from Tik Tok Three for $5.25 million in April, 2022.

An approved plan for the site comprised an 11-storey, mixed-use office and residential building.

Fortis then filed its plans to remove the residential component and increase the tower to 13 storeys. This was approved in May 2023.

The new plans put a $100 million value on the tower, according to filed documents—substantially more than the $59 million value of the 13-storey plan—and would be funded by Pallas Capital.

Fortis said it was confident that the development would be popular despite cost-of-living and interest rate pressures.

▲ Renders of the latest plans filed by Fortis for its Newstead site.

Fortis associate director Dan Boman told The Urban Developer that an increased demand for luxury apartments in Brisbane was a key reason for the company’s plan to create a higher, and largely residential, development.

“Brisbane City Council’s Inner City Strategy report (released in April, 2023) identified Newstead as a priority precinct for investigation … and we feel that the proposed development aligns with the fourth pillar of ‘creating inner city neighbourhoods’, while also catering to the increased demand for luxury apartments,” Boman said.

Boman said the tower, designed by Bureau Proberts, paid homage to the historic brick warehouses that define Newstead’s fabric while offering a contemporary living experience.

The Newstead scheme is part of Fortis’ move into the River City market—in November the Pallas Group company was greenlit for a  15-storey Kangaroo Point tower, dubbed River House, after filing plans earlier last year.

Designed by Plus Architecture with interiors by Mim Design, it will deliver 14 three-bedroom homes at 44 O’Connell Street.

▲ The Sydney developer wants to go higher still than its approved 13-storey plans.

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