Former Chemist Warehouse building 113 East Street to be demolished

The building has 50mm cracks in the walls and a sagging ceiling at ‘high risk of collapse’. See what will replace it and the strict conditions for the demolition.

Chemist Warehouse relocated in October, after storm damaged the building.

The former Chemist Warehouse building at 113 East Street in the Rockhampton CBD will soon be demolished.

A development application to build a new mixed-use space in its place was submitted to Rockhampton Regional Council in October 2022 and approved in January.

Chemist Warehouse had relocated to a location further down along East St in late 2021 after a storm caused extensive damage and made the building unsafe.

Designs for a new two-storey building to replace the former Chemist Warehouse building in East Street, Rockhampton CBD.

A company with directors of the Chemist Warehouse Group had bought the non-heritage listed 113 East St property in 2006 for $1.1 million.

Plans for its replacement detail a 8.4m high two-storey retail and office space of about the same size as the existing building.

The ground floor will be for retail with the top floor designated as offices with 100kw solar panels on the roof.

The building will have retail on the ground floor and office space on the top floor.

A lift in the lobby entrance will allow for access between the floors.

Icon Consulting Engineers’ Scott Fairley had stated, in the application to council, that the existing building was structurally unsound and “extremely dilapidated” with “severe foundation cracks, structurally unsound cantilevered steel awnings to the building facade and water damage in the roof structure”.

Large cracks can be seen in the wall of the former Chemist Warehouse building.

Further, there were 50mm cracks in the walls, deviation of up to 100mm in the first floor structure, and severe sagging of ceiling linings considered to be at “high risk of collapse”.

“While the proposed demolition of the awning does not comply … it has been demonstrated the awning is structurally unsound and incapable of repair,” the report states.

It adds large marchinery would be necessary to stabilise existing foundations but restricted access made this unfeasible, and further financially unviable.

The building is now located next to a pedestrian walk through to Rockhampton Museum of Art.

No submissions were received regarding the development application.

As part of the approval conditions, any damage or alterations to electricity, telephone, water mains, sewerage mains and/or public utility installations during works must incur no costs to the council.

Permits will also need to be obtained before the removal and/or demolition of any existing structure on the site.

There will be no storage of materials or parking of construction machinery or contractors vehicles in East St or Quay Lane during works.