ResidentialLindsay SaundersMon 22 Jun 26
Gold Coast Supersite Comes to Market in Heart of Southport CBD
A 5420sq m state-owned development site in the heart of Southport with the potential to deliver more than 300 homes has been released to market.
Economic Development Queensland (EDQ) has appointed Colliers to run a request for proposals campaign for the property at 1–3 Scarborough Street within the Southport Priority Development Area (PDA), one of the state’s key urban renewal precincts.
The site is being pitched as one of the Gold Coast’s most significant development opportunities in recent years, with flexible planning controls supporting a range of outcomes including build-to-sell apartments, build-to-rent projects, retirement living, hotels and serviced apartments.
The property occupies a prominent position next to the G:link light rail corridor—it was used as a staged site for the first stage of that project—and has views across the Broadwater, Nerang River and Surfers Paradise skyline.
The Southport site has been a part of the suburb’s CBD ambitions for more than a decade.
While the proponents of Australia’s proposed tallest skyscraper, One Park Lane, spent years negotiating access to the parcel, which adjoins its site, the government has now effectively reset the site and returned it to the market as a standalone housing opportunity.
Queensland Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development, Infrastructure and Planning Jarrod Bleijie said the release of the site would unlock an under-utilised parcel vacant for more than a decade.
He said developers would benefit from the streamlined approvals process associated with the Priority Development Area framework, reducing red tape and accelerating housing delivery.
The Southport PDA, declared in 2013, spans almost 200ha and was established to cement the suburb’s role as the Gold Coast’s central business district, encompassing residential, commercial, retail, education and health precincts.
Colliers Queensland residential director Troy Linnane said opportunities of this scale had become increasingly scarce.
“This is a genuinely rare opportunity to secure a large-scale, development-ready site in the centre of Southport with unlimited development potential and expansive coastal views,” Linnane said.
“With limited development sites of this scale remaining within the Southport CBD, we expect this opportunity will attract strong interest from major developers looking to establish or expand their development pipeline on the Gold Coast.”
Colliers residential executive Jackson Robinson said the offering coincided with a transformative period for Southport and the northern Gold Coast.
The site is within walking distance of the proposed 12,000-seat Gold Coast Arena and opposite major redevelopment activity under way at Marina Mirage and The Spit.
Robinson said a pipeline of infrastructure investment—including Broadwater upgrades, the Coomera Connector and M1 enhancements—was reshaping the precinct.
Housing undersupply remains a key driver behind the campaign.
According to Colliers, the Gold Coast requires about 6500 new homes annually to meet demand, while approvals have averaged just over 5000 homes a year since the pandemic. Vacancy rates remain around 1.2 per cent.
The city’s population is forecast to exceed one million residents by 2041, supported by ongoing interstate migration and continued demand for coastal housing.
Submissions for the request for proposals campaign close on July 16. The government said a proposed settlement date of June 30, 2027, would allow the purchaser time to undertake planning work and secure approvals before settlement.
