The old shopping centre has finally been demolished, and the owner of the site will seek to mitigate the flood risk in a new development plan.
The old shopping centre has finally been demolished, and the owner of the site will seek to mitigate the flood risk in a new development plan.
By Sean Parnell
February 13, 2025 — 1.23pm
Brisbane City Council has told developer Mirvac it would support the former Toombul Shopping Centre site being turned into a transit-oriented residential and retail precinct.
The centre, damaged in the 2022 floods, has taken 12 months to clear and Mirvac is now working on a new development plan it expects will take “several months” to submit.
While there has been speculation Toombul could become a 2032 Games venue, much of the site is flood-prone and Mirvac has previously flagged a mixed-use residential precinct to make use of the public transport connections.
“We’ve been working closely with authorities, including Brisbane City Council, over the past two years to agree the parameters for future development of the site, including items such as traffic, location and size of the bus interchange, open space, building envelopes – including retail – and the most important part of the puzzle, the flood solution,” Mirvac told Toombul residents in an email this week.
“This has been a complex process that has taken time to get right and is a big milestone in the potential redevelopment of the site.”
A council spokesman confirmed the focus on a mixed-use precinct.
“Council has been working with Mirvac to help them understand what is allowable under the neighbourhood plan,” the spokesman said.
“We’ve put a strong focus on the flood-prone land to make sure any flooding issues are addressed in their development application.
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“Council would be supportive of a mix-used development featuring housing and retail, in line with the neighbourhood plan, as well as open space to address flooding concerns.”
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Toombul has been the subject of previous, tentative development proposals, featuring unit towers on the higher, northern end of the site, and a new bus interchange to complement the nearby train station.
However, the prospect of parkland on the southern end of the site, and a modern retail offering, could prove attractive to new buyers in Brisbane’s constrained housing market.
Mirvac will now focus on finding the financial backers and builders to deliver the new Toombul town centre.
“Now that we have council support confirming what is permissible on the site, we are commencing discussions with a targeted group of potential partners, including capital and other delivery partners, to support the future redevelopment,” the company said.
“Given the scale and size of the site, along with the current challenging construction environment, we believe this will be the fastest pathway to bring life back to Toombul.”
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Sean Parnell is the Editor of Brisbane Times. He has won journalism awards for analysis, investigations, news and sport, written a biography, and has a Graduate Certificate in (Digital) Business Administration. Sean lives in Brisbane with his family.Connect via Twitter or email.
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