Shovels Hit Dirt on Landmark South Brisbane BtR Tower

Construction has begun on one of South Brisbane’s most closely watched development sites, where a landmark build-to-rent tower is to rise as a 34-level cylindrical cluster.

Kio Investment Management—led by former Hines Australia director and head of living Sam Bisla—is behind the project spanning an 1822sq m site at 10-12 Cordelia Street.

To be known as Halo, it was originally conceived as a build-to-sell apartment tower for Aria Property Group before Kio acquired the site and it was repositioned with approval for a build-to-rent play.

The fledgling Sydney-based real asset manager is understood to have quietly put its foot on the prominent holding—bound by Cordelia, Boundary and Peel streets—in 2024 in a deal reportedly in the mid-$20 millions.

Hutchinson Builders, which has been engaged as the delivery partner, is now moving into the construction phase after preparatory site works were undertaken late last year.

Practical completion is slated for late 2028.

Overall, the Woods Bagot-designed scheme will comprise a mix of 286 one, two and three-bedroom apartments from levels 5 to 30, above a four-level podium.

A full-height green wall will wrap the Cordelia Street frontage, reinforcing the project’s interface with the public realm and nearby Fish Lane.

▲ A rendering of the Halo build-to-rent tower under construction at 10-12 Cordelia Street, South Brisbane.

Alongside the tower’s start of construction, a minor change application also has been lodged to fine-tune elements of the approved scheme.

The proposed amendments do not dramatically alter the scheme but instead reflect detailed design development as the project moves into construction.

Of most note is a proposed reduction in building height from 127.5m to 121.5m—a 6m decrease achieved through adjustments to finished floor levels and floor-to-floor heights, rather than the removal of storeys.

Reconfiguration of the basement, lower ground and podium levels as well as revised layouts to the ground level and residential floors are among the planned changes.

Also under the proposed amendments, carparking has increased by one space to 195 bays and the approved 358 bicycle spaces redistributed across lower levels.

On the rooftop, the mechanical plant has been rationalised and centralised, freeing up additional communal open space. Usable rooftop amenity has increased to almost 900sq m, accommodating a 25m lap pool, landscaped areas and shared facilities designed to support long-term rental living.

▲ A rendering of the full-height green wall that will wrap the tower’s Cordelia Street frontage.

Changes also have been proposed to the approved material palette to enhance the architectural quality, durability, and cohesion of the development.

“Key changes include the replacement of the previously approved light and dark grey concrete finishes with a combination of charcoal and taupe-toned concrete, providing a warmer colour palette,” the documents said.

The design for the tower’s rooftop crown treatment also has been updated from a feature glass and metal screen to a perforated metal panel in a taupe powder coat finish, complemented by champagne powder coat aluminium extrusions.

“The tower volume is articulated as a series of cylindrical forms, to create an expression of verticality and slenderness in the tower,” Woods Bagot principal David Lee said in a statement.

“The circular motif presents a striking counterpoint to the immediate urban context, with the curved geometry helping to direct sightlines away from neighbouring buildings.”