Brisbane is finally getting a major skyscraper that is set to become an Australian landmark, generating jobs and boosting the Brisbane economy.
The building, being developed by Australian companies Billbergia and AMP Capital, is planned for 222 Margaret Street in Brisbane with its sister site at 111 Mary Street.
The project has become well known to the industry as 111+222.
The buildings will be 42-storeys and 90-storeys high consecutively.
222 will be the third tallest building in Australia at 274 metres, behind the Q1 on the Gold Coast (322 metres) and the Eureka Tower in Melbourne (297 metres).
History of the project
According to Brisbanedevelopment.com, the original plans for the building were for it to be built to 297 metres or even a possible 300 metres to make it Australia’s second tallest building. However, Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), turned down the original plans, due to height possibly causing interruptions to aircraft radar signals.
However, with the restriction to the height set at 274 metres, no building is allowed to be higher, locking in the potential for 222 Margaret Street to be Brisbane’s tallest building.
Previously Austcorp, who bought the building in 2007 for their Vision project, owned the site. Unfortunately, the 80-storey building that they began to develop didn’t go ahead as they were hit by the 2008 Global Financial Crisis and were forced to stop production.
Brisbane Skytower
The project is worth over $1 billion and is expected to include a four or five-star hotel in the 42-storey building, as well as approximately 1100 residential apartments in the 90-storey building, known as the
Expected to be included on the ground floor of the project are bars, cafes, retail stores, a 24-hour concierge and even a ballroom. There are also plans to include a “sky recreation deck” area on the top of the 90-storey building according to news.com.au.
The selling point for the building, other than the obvious 'tallest building in Brisbane' point, is that residents and hotel guests will be close to everything the CBD has on offer, including the City Botanical Gardens, the dining and entertainment areas on Queen Street Mall and Eagle Street Pier.
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Race for the tallest building
The building of the project is expected to take at least five years, which means that the opportunity to be the tallest building in Brisbane may be lost to another building.
According to Nine News, there are plans for another 274 metre high building the Shayher Group are developing near the law courts on George Street. If finished first, this building will claim the title of Brisbane's tallest building.
The race is on to see who will be first to receive the honour of Brisbane’s tallest building.
Building the economy
According to Lord Mayor Graham Quirk, during the building stages of the project, it is expected that about 800 building jobs will become available, as well as 650 jobs once the building is complete.
Not only will the amount of jobs that have been created through this building help the economy, it is also expected that the buildings will increase visitors due to the potential to be a landmark for Queensland, and will help Brisbane to evolve further as a commercial and residential area.
"It is a very high calibre and exciting project that will further define Brisbane as a new world city. Across the CBD there are already a number of new developments underway which are contributing to the evolution of our city as an economic and commercial hub and these towers will add to this,” Mr Quirk said.
Construction timeline
The construction of the building is planned to take five years for completion, with different stages taking place over the period. The first stage, which was an eight-storey car park, has already been completed.
Prices for apartments in the
Brisbane SkyTower start at $425,000 for a one bedroom and prices will go up based on the number of bedrooms and the level they are on. The project is set for completion in 2019.
The global launch of the building is 29 November 2014.
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