A luxury apartments project involving the conversion of a low-grade office building in a prime Brisbane location has received development approval from the Brisbane City Council, with work expected to start early next year.

This innovative adaptive reuse project from Brisbane developer Chapter Two aims to transform the dated office building on the prominent Wickham Terrace in Spring Hill into a boutique collection of whole-floor apartments and a two-level penthouse.

The project also received support from Brisbane City Council, which said that “the development is considered to be a very good example of adaptive reuse of a redundant small office building".

Constructed more than five decades ago, the Spring Hill building features solid floor plates that allow for 300 square metres of column-free residential living per level. Each luxury apartment will include up to four bedrooms with ensuite, a gourmet kitchen with butler’s pantry, study, and luxury fittings and finishes. The five-bedroom penthouse will have a second storey at rooftop level with lounge, bar, wine cellar and 180 square metres of outdoor living, including an exclusive-use swimming pool.

Designed by architects Cera Stribley, the building will feature basement parking, generous common areas, a private lift, cascading greenery and a New York-style entrance lobby. Located just moments from the Brisbane CBD, the project has been designed in keeping with the heritage of Wickham Terrace.

“Prior to finding this site, we explored countless other opportunities that unfortunately were not viable for adaptive reuse from a development and sustainability perspective,” Chapter Two director Oliver Bagheri said.

“We engaged specialist consultants to undertake complex X-ray scans and keyhole drill testing of the structure, which confirmed it was a very solid building with a structure that could be retained for a new phase of life.”

Adaptive reuse of lower graded commercial buildings on city fringes is being considered as a solution to address housing shortages while also providing sustainability benefits.

“By repurposing this structure and using existing materials rather than sourcing new ones, we forecast a significant reduction in embodied carbon,” Chapter Two director Jon Quayle says.

“Our concept retains almost 1,700 tonnes of the existing concrete structure, which helps to save more than 1,500 tonnes of CO2 – the equivalent of charging 100 million iPhones or driving 6,174,008km in an average vehicle.

“In addition, our focus on solar, natural light and natural ventilation, including eaves, shading control and screening, will reduce the operational carbon footprint of the building.”

Image: Supplied

Branko Miletic

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