The site of Sumitomo’s first Australian “build to rent” development is rising fast over the Brisbane River, with construction crews preparing to pour the level 7 concrete. That is according to Cedar Pacific – Sumitimo’s partner in the project, who invited representatives from Australian Ethical Investment, one of multiple financial investors now backing the project, to tour the site of the 32-storey high-rise at 50 Quay Street.
The first in a $1.2 billion investment into Trans-Tasman projects, which could see built-to-rent developments rise in Melbourne, Canberra, and Auckland, Sumitomo last year invested $375 million into the project—the first delivered under the Queensland government’s affordable BTR program—which will see 475 units (50% affordable) constructed on the city’s western edge.
Designed by Nettletontribe and built by Hutchinson Builders, who were responsible for constructing the Eaves, the mixed-use development will feature shared amenities in the first four levels (including 275 car parks), the 475 units from levels 5 to 29, and a rooftop recreational area on levels 30 and 31. Targeting a 5 Star Green Star Buildings rating – ‘Australian Best Practice’ – the development is targeting a minimum 5 Star NatHERS rating as well as Gold (58%) and Silver (42%) level Livable Housing Australia (LHA) standards – thus ensuring accessibility and ease of living.
Design buildings with timber in mind; don’t retrofit concrete designs.
While the new building will feature a traditional concrete core, George Konstandakos, General Manager of Sumitomo Forestry Australia, said the Japanese-based timber giant was looking to use cross-laminated timber in other build-to-rent sites across Australia. Speaking to Build Offsite last year, Konstandakos said the key was enter the design process as early as possible – potentially as design partners – to identify ideal projects for mass timber construction: “We are building assets, so a lot of the issues with buildings are that they are not designed upfront to be timber. And, that’s why we want to be involved right from the beginning, from the conceptual stage, is to design them efficiently in timber, not to retrospectively change them from concrete.”
It comes as Wood Central last week revealed that one of Brisbane’s ugly ducklings, the former site of the Queensland Public Trustee, at 450 Queen Street, will undergo a major glow-up with a three-storey cross-laminated timber extension to feature in a $300m retrofit of the concrete-based 1970s building: “The previously outdated 450 Queen Street will be repositioned as an A-grade asset with premium level services and amenities, embedding exceptional sustainability,” said Andrew Neary, executive director of PGIM Real Estate Australia asset management. “In line with our global sustainability strategy, 450 Queen Street is targeting the highest available credentials, including a 6 Star Green Star rating and features one of Australia’s tallest cross-laminated timber extensions.”
- To learn more about Sumitomo’s involvement in its first built-to-rent project in the Australian market, download Sumitomo’s original press release.
