Prime Site: New beginning for rare Valley asset near hipster haven James Street precinct

A NEGLECTED two-storey Fortitude Valley building that drew ‘astronomical’ buyer interest will undergo an extensive refurbishment to take advantage of the nearby superstar, hipster-haven high street.

141 Robertson St, Fortitude Valley has oodles of potential.

A NEGLECTED two-storey Fortitude Valley commercial building will undergo an extensive refurbishment to take advantage of one of Brisbane’s busiest high streets.

New Farm residents Hannah Howard and Madalyn Orr shopping on James Street. Picture: Annette Dew

A private local investor paid $2.625 million for the freestanding building at 141 Robertson Rd after an expressions of campaign through Savills’ Jack Morrison and Nick Russell.

Mr Morrison said the campaign attracted more than 150 inquiries and 10 offers.

“Properties like this which is about 120m from James St are hard to come across and the interest in this was pretty astronomical,” he said.

“But it still took the right type of buyer to see the property for what it could be.”

The building has 660sq m of floor area and sits on a 546sq m site. The previous owner bought the property in the 1990s and it was largely left untouched

Mr Morrison said Apollo Property Group is refurbishing the property with plans for a character-style office upstairs while downstairs will have more of a “retail feel”.

The James St retail precinct continues to build momentum, with the opening of the second freestanding David Jones store in Australia, and the current construction of the high end boutique hotel, The Calile.

Mr Russell said the Robertson St property sparked a huge level of interest from local owner-occupiers and investors and also inquiries from Sydney investors.

“But ultimately we had to find the right purchaser who could see the property for its potential after refurbishment, and was willing to conduct the necessary restoration works,” he said.

Sapphire de Goede poses on James Street in the Valley. The retail precinct has gone from strength to strength in recent years. Picture: Jono Searle/AAP