Brisbane’s Bulimba Barracks sold to Taiwan developer

The sale was a drawn-out process with the Department of Defence appointing Knight Frank to sell the surplus land in 2018 in what was pitched as the largest Brisbane riverside development site to be put on the market for decades.

There has been long-running speculation over the sale process for the 20-hectare site after plans to sell off the historic barracks were announced by the federal government in 2015.

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The purchase clears the way for the international group to launch a $1 billion housing scheme at a time when many sites controlled by smaller developers have stalled and units remain unsold.

Defence said it had entered into a contract with Shayher but did not disclose the price of the historic asset.

Minister for Defence Linda Reynolds says selling the site marks a significant step in the government’s commitment to unlocking surplus commonwealth land for alternative uses, including housing.

An artist’s impression of the mooted master planned community at the Bulimba Barracks.

Shayher is part of Taiwanese apartment developer Par Jar Group and has projects including a $1 billion redevelopment of Melbourne’s historic Pentridge Prison into a retail and residential precinct.

Shayher is also undertaking the Brisbane Quarter Development on the former site of the Supreme Court of Queensland. That three-tower precinct includes a W Hotel, an office skyscraper and an 80-storey apartment project.

The Taiwanese group’s other projects include a Brisbane site it picked up from Investa in 2016 for $98 million, which carries approval for two apartment towers.

Shayher also owns Capalaba Central shopping centre in Brisbane, bought from Dexus for $148.5 million.

The Asian group has a strong appetite for local assets and also looked at buying SkyCity Entertainment’s Darwin casino but that fell into the hands of US company Delaware North for $188 million.

Reynolds says Shayher has a “demonstrated capacity to develop, remediate and protect the heritage values of the property”.

An aerial of the Bulimba Barracks site. Picture: Defence department

Minister for Housing Michael Sukkar says the contract decision follows a competitive open market sale process in accordance with the Commonwealth Property Disposal Policy.

He says selling Bulimba Barracks will increase housing supply in Brisbane, with Brisbane City Council’s Bulimba Barracks Master Plan estimating a “development outcome” of about 855 residences.

Defence anticipates settlement of the property deal in early 2020 with proceeds going into boosting its capacity.

Knight Frank’s Julie Saunders and Christian Sandstrom were the marketing agents but declined to comment.

This article originally appeared on www.theaustralian.com.au/property.