Hobart church’s stunning office conversion

Murray Street Chapel is unlike any office space currently on the market in Hobart.

This office accommodation has a rich history as a place of worship dating back to the early 1900s.

Recently, it has undergone a makeover and been transformed into a work environment. It is now just awaiting its new occupants.

Commercial Insights: Subscribe to receive the latest news and updates

Heather Mason, a property representative with Devine Property, is expecting this city building to attract strong attention due to the unique offering and the state of the Hobart real estate market.

Now that’s street appeal.

She says office vacancy in Hobart is sitting at 5.9%, which is the third lowest in the country.

“We have seen good demand for education and RTO [registered training organisation] type tenants, and new office space around the city has leased well to private-sector tenants,” she says.

“There is less stock to choose from right now, so we are seeing movement of older stock from the market also.”

Mason says the Murray Street Chapel was built in 1917 and was a practising place of worship for the Christian Brethren through to 1998.

She says in 1998 the property was bought by the current owners, Tim and Karen Smith, and has been used for a number of purposes.

I’ll pop my desk right there, thanks.

“Tim embarked on refurbishing the property mid-2018 and engaged Queensland architect Sean Gill to create and design a new entrance and associated front features, with local architect Andrew Francis overseeing the interior design,’’ Mason says.

“The construction was carried out by Stephen Salter Builders.”

She says it is not uncommon to see church buildings repurposed.

“We have seen a lot of this over the past six months,” Mason says.

The church turned office features crafted interiors.

With the assistance of a Shopfront Improvement Grant by the Hobart City Council, a modest yet stylish facelift has been given to the building’s facade, and modifications were made internally for the use as offices.

The building at 164 Murray Street offers two levels of accommodation for lease, with open-plan floorplans.

Mason says 164 Murray Street would ideally suit medium-sized office tenants, ranging from consultancy to architects or health or law practitioners.

The attractive entry to the converted office space.

The lettable areas are 114sqm on the ground floor and 115sqm upstairs.

The lease price is $80,000 per annum plus outgoings and GST.

Murray Street Chapel boasts an attractive city location with high vehicle and foot traffic, level street access via a ramp, a new internal staircase, a new kitchen and toilet amenities.

There is storage included at the rear of the property.

Subject to approvals, there are also good signage opportunities.

This article from The Mercury originally appeared as “Historic Hobart church transformed into standout office space”.