End of an era as wrecking ball date set for beloved Toombul

The owner of Brisbane’s flood-ravaged Toombul shopping centre has revealed a timeline for demolition, with the process kicking off next month.

Mirvac said the decision to close the shopping centre was not taken lightly. Picture: David Clark

The shuttered Toombul shopping centre, a much beloved meeting place since it was built 56 years ago, will be demolished in a process kicking off next month, owner Mirvac has announced.

In its January newsletter to residents, the retail giant says that three telecommunications companies, Waveconn, Telstra and TPG, are in their final stages of preliminary work at the Sandgate Rd site to keep mobile phone coverage at normal levels.

Next month the demolition process will begin with minor works including disconnecting services within the site and the removal of some interior fittings and fixtures before the wrecking ball can swing.

Mirvac has appointed a contractor, Rosenlund Contractors Pty Ltd, to undertake the demolition works.

Demolition of the abandoned Toombul shopping centre will begin next month. Picture David Clark

Demolition will occur six days a week from 6.30am to 6.30pm, submissions to council state.

Approved plans state that the Toombul bus interchange and associated roads will be retained.

Mirvac, which owns and manages $11.9b of retail, office and industrial property in Australian capital cities, announced the permanent closure of Toombul in a media release from CEO Susan Lloyd-Hurwitz on June 9, 2022 following damage caused by the floods on February 25 and February 27, 2022.

A car submerged in the carpark at Toombul after a major weather event. Picture: AFP PHOTO / Patrick HAMILTON

“The situation is heartbreaking and the decision to close Toombul was not taken lightly … the centre’s electricity, fire and escalators were all significantly damaged,” the statement read.

“The Mirvac board then made the very difficult decision to close the centre taking into consideration the extent of the damage, the risk of future flooding,”.

The 9.9ha Toombul centre was home to up to 130 tenants, including Coles, Target and Kmart, many of whom were critical of the company for failing to pay them compensation for terminating their leases after the February flood.

Kmart has sued Mirvac for $10m in the Supreme Court alleging the $8b property giant breached their lease when they closed the centre.

Mirvac has not yet announced its new development for the site, which is still in the design phase.