Charter Hall unveils Brisbane Brownfield site vision

Up to five towers of up to 30 storeys with up to 1,500 apartments could be delivered under a new vision revealed for one of Brisbane’s biggest inner-city infill development sites.

Listed property fund giant Charter Hall is behind the proposed project for the Montpelier Road mixed-use precinct.

Significantly, it would support the accelerated delivery of housing at scale, including a potential build-to-rent game.

Documents outlining its transformative plans for the 1.56ha derelict site at Bowen Hills, about 3km north of the CBD, have been submitted to Brisbane City Council.

They have been submitted as part of a planning scheme variation application, in particular an increase in the building height limit to 30 storeys, to “catalyze” urban renewal of the site.

The maximum existing building height for Montpelier Road fronting the lot is only eight stories.

According to the application, the large development at 66-98 Montpelier Road would “likely” house three to five towers, some with shared podiums, rising stages up to 22, 26 and 30 storeys.

“The proposal will unlock and facilitate the delivery of substantial housing for the locality and Brisbane city center more broadly,” the documents say. “Initial estimates show that with the proposed variations, the precinct could deliver up to 1500 homes with a mix of one, two and three bedroom homes in the future.”

Under the proposal, as well as ground floor and lower level commercial/commercial tenancies, there would also be the possibility of creating a 1,000 square meter urban common across the site.

At the moment, however, no development design for the site has been presented.

“Brisbane is experiencing pronounced challenges with housing supply, particularly in well-located and well-served inner-city locations,” a planning report said.

“The Montpelier Road Precinct offers a rare and significant opportunity to respond to the evolving needs of Brisbane… in its strategic location at the crossroads of Newstead, Bowen Hills and Fortitude Valley.

▲ A 2016 rendering of Valley Live, a four-building venue planned for the Bowen Hills site but never realized.

“The applicant wishes to take this opportunity to put in place a planning framework that will allow for the future delivery of significant housing stock through the redevelopment of the site (which) could include both build-to-sell and build-to-let typologies rent

“If approved, the variance request would set a path for future development applications.”

The report said the future redevelopment of the site would also “tie together” the evolving areas of Newstead and Bowen Hills by enabling retail and landscape improvements to Montpelier Road.

“It is questionable whether this key outcome would be achieved under current planning controls given the limited density that could currently be achieved,” he said.

“The current planning provisions applicable to the site … have been superseded by events and prevent infill development on a significant and necessary scale that reflects the level of accessibility and amenity the site has.”

Charter Hall and Dutch pension fund PGGM entered the Bowen Hills site in 2022, securing it in a $60m off-market deal from office developer Bill Henderson’s OPD.

It is occupied by commercial and large-format commercial buildings, including an office, hardware and supply business, and showroom uses.

Brisbane-based Metro Property Group previously earmarked the site for a mixed-use development with up to 550 apartments.

In 2016, OPD acquired it for about $25 million. His plans for a four-building precinct to be called Valley Live, including 35,474 square meters of offices, 9,986 square meters of retail space and an urban plaza, never came to fruition.