LEIGHTON Properties and Devine have teamed up for a $1 billion inner-city development in Townsville, North Queensland.
The JV has bought a 17.3 hectare site from Queensland Rail on the south bank of
The proposed waterfront urban village will feature up to 1,200 apartments, retail space and an office and commercial precinct. And around 20% of the site will be devoted to green buffers and conservation corridors, with boardwalks weaving along the creek’s edge.
Leighton Properties’ director Andrew Borger said Townsville is one of the most dynamic and diversified economies in regional Australia, built on the backbone of a thriving port, a booming mining sector and the defence force.
“The urban village will complement the CBD and will be part of the broader urban renewal of Townsville’s city centre that is currently underway,” he added.
Devine’s founder David Devine said the partners’ vision is to transform the old south rail yards into a thriving riverside village, featuring medium and high density residential apartments, a commercial precinct and neighbourhood retail.
“Sub-tropical design will drive the development, which will feature a tree-lined
Devine said the company entered the market at the end of 2006 after identifying strong economic and population growth.
“The overwhelming interest in our 72 hectare debut residential community at River Parks estate in Kelso, demonstrates our research was on target,” Devine said. “We are now very pleased to be expanding our development pipeline in the region with the delivery of a billion-dollar urban renewal project that will change the face of the south bank of Ross Creek,”
Leighton Properties’ managing director Mark Gray said JVs like Townsville’s new waterfront urban village, and the recently announced Hamilton Harbour project in Brisbane, have a natural synergy and capitalise on both companies’ experience in commercial, residential and mixed-use projects.
Construction is scheduled to start by mid-2009, following extensive planning and community consultation and in conjunction with Townsville City Council approvals for the site.
The development will be staged over seven to 10 years.
Australian Property Journal
