Games Prompts Wentworth to Push Go on Hamilton Precinct
Shovels are finally poised to hit dirt for a triple-tower development approved more than a decade ago for one of Brisbane’s most affluent riverside precincts.
Wentworth Equities is pushing the button on its $1-billion Hamilton Grove project to capitalise on the city’s “predicted Olympic-led population explosion”.
Touted to have drawn inspiration from the world-renowned retail, dining and entertainment destination The Grove in Los Angeles, it will transform a 7637sq m site at exclusive inner-north-east Hamilton.
Construction of the first tower is slated to begin in the first quarter of this year with civil engineering contractor Mainland Civil engaged for early works.
The scheme comprises 61 waterfront apartments as well as plans for a premium hotel. Completion is expected in late 2028.
Sydney-based Wentworth Equities acquired the site—within Economic Development Queensland’s 304ha Northshore Hamilton Priority Development Area—for almost $20 million in 2014.
Its bold vision for three towers up to 30 storeys and 433 apartments above retail and commercial space was subsequently given the green light.
In a twist, Wentworth took the site at Hercules Street to market in 2022 and struck a $70-million deal with Danny Isaac’s Descon Group.
But the deal fell over when Descon failed to settle and the property was re-listed.
Wentworth’s latest move to forge ahead with the project is a strategic turnaround by the privately owned property investment and development firm and brings an apparent end to the years-long saga over the site’s future.
“When we first purchased this property in 2014, I had a very clear vision in my mind for this precinct but ultimately, it wasn’t the right time—Hamilton was still very much an emerging precinct,” Wentworth’s executive chairman Sameh Ibrahim said.
“Since then, Hamilton and surrounding suburbs like Ascot and Albion have significantly grown and matured into a precinct that aligns with our vision for Hamilton Grove.
“We’ve worked carefully with our planner, Urbis and our architects, Fuse Architects to ensure that this is a thoughtfully designed, world class precinct that adds value and vibrancy to the community.
“Brisbane as a whole has so much to offer in the way of lifestyle appeal, but as it stands it is so widespread—you go to Howard Smith Wharves for fine dining, you go to James Street for shopping, you go to West End to walk along the river—but what if you could go to Hamilton Grove for everything?
“Our vision is a precinct that brings together the best of Brisbane into one central space abundant with culture, class and culinary experience—a place that a lucky few will get to call home, but the rest of Brisbane still get to explore and experience at their leisure.”
