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The Queensland Fire and Emergency Services will take over all 10 storeys of the TAB building in a landmark whole-of-building deal.
Alceon Queensland has secured its largest suburban lease commitment to date at one of inner north-east Brisbane’s most recognisable commercial buildings.
The former TAB building in Albion has long been known as an icon of 1970s brutalist architecture, and at the time of construction was at the cutting edge of urban design.
Now, the building is set to be transformed into a climate-conscious modern office space that will make the most of the building’s proximity to road and rail infrastructure and impressive views of the Brisbane River and Brisbane CBD.
The transformation is being undertaken by architects at Nettletontribe and construction contractor Graystone, who aim to upcycle the building from an energy-inefficient 1970s relic to a hub of productivity with a five-star rating from NABERS (National Australian Built Environment Rating System).
According to Alceon Queensland executive director Todd Pepper, the commitment with Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES) underscores the importance of “the adaptive re-use of redundant or vacant city fringe and suburban office buildings for social infrastructure purposes”.
“The former TAB building provided a unique opportunity to reposition the asset in the fabric of Brisbane social infrastructure,” Mr Pepper said.
With south-east Queensland currently one of the fastest-growing regions in Australia, Mr Pepper felt assured that demand for the redevelopment would be high.
He explained: “Alceon Queensland has completed in excess of 100,000 square metres of greenfield office development and adaptive re-use of redundant or vacant office buildings in the suburbs and fringe, and accordingly was comfortable that there was sufficient demand in the inner northern corridor of Brisbane for a newly refurbished commercial office building credentialed with a five-star NABERS rating and other ESG benefits.”
Mr Pepper also revealed that the revitalisation of the TAB building is just the beginning of many ambitious plans for the site.
He stated that the holding was “significantly underdeveloped”, with only 20–25 per cent of the site being used.
Mr Pepper stated that around 8,000 square metres of surplus land remains, ripe for development of 15- to 20-storey buildings with a host of potential uses.
Currently, Alceon plans to include a seven-storey office building, a 15-storey residential tower, ground-level retail, a publicly accessible plaza, and four levels of basement car parking to the urban renewal project.
“This lease to QFES is Alceon Queensland’s largest suburban lease commitment to date,” said Mr Pepper.
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