Broadway Hotel must be made safe, secure in 60 days: council

Brisbane City Council has slapped the owner of a fire-ravaged inner-city heritage hotel with a 60-day deadline to make changes at the site.

A DEVELOPER who owns a fire-ravaged heritage-listed hotel in Brisbane’s inner south will be required to make it safe and secure in the next 60 days.

The Development Tribunal has upheld an enforcement notice that Brisbane City Council issued to the owner of the Broadway Hotel to make it safe, after it was appealed eight months ago.

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The owner had insisted the historic pub was too dilapidated to fix after several fires ripped through it.

Council city planning chairman Matthew Bourke announced the tribunal’s decision at Tuesday’s council meeting.

He said under the notice the owner was required to secure the Broadway Hotel’s walls, including installation of support systems for the dilapidated building, within 60 days.

“I am confident the Broadway Hotel can be restored to its former glory and Brisbane City Council has been doing everything in its power to see the building protected from further damage or demolition,” he said.

“We can now move forward in preserving this well-known Woolloongabba building and protect its structural integrity going forward.”

He said the council had proactively taken appropriate measures to protect the 129-year-old hotel, including the issuing of show-cause and enforcement notices to the owner.

He said upheld notice provided a clear test case of the council’s powers under the Building Act.

The Broadway Hotel was most recently hit by fire in September last year.

Cr Bourke added that he and Environment Minister Leeanne Enoch had a positive discussion last Friday on the way forward for the Broadway Hotel.

“Council will continue to work closely with the State Government to ensure the state heritage-listed building is restored to its pre-fire condition,” he said.

Greens councillor Jonathan Sri (The Gabba) said the tribunal outcome was positive but the hotel was “now in an extreme state of disrepair”.

“It’s urgent that restoration works occur before more intense summer weather events cause further damage,” he said.

“I’m still extremely disappointed that both the State Government and (the council) took so long to act, when the hotel has been sitting empty since the first fire in 2010.”

He repeated his call on both levels of government to jointly buy the site and restore it as a community music venue and public park.

“If the LNP really wanted to preserve the Broadway, they would bring it into public ownership,” he said.

“We already have enough high-rises popping up around Woolloongabba – we need to set aside more land for public space and community facilities.”

Environment Minister Leeanne Enoch

Ms Enoch welcomed the tribunal’s decision, which she said came after calls from the State Government for the council to “do its job” and use its more extensive powers under the Building Act.

“Now it is up to the owner to ensure essential work is carried out to ensure the building continues to be protected.”

She said her department had commissioned expert reports that confirmed the fire had not compromised the building’s overall structural stability, and only limited demolition was necessary.

“The reports showed that temporary propping of masonry walls was required and a new roof was needed to ensure the building’s long-term preservation,” she said.

The reports contradicted the owner’s insistence the hotel could not be restored after a September 2018 fire.

Member for South Brisbane Jackie Trad said she had fought to ensure the historic pub was protected, pointing to the State Government issuing six stop-order notices to prevent its demolition.

“As the local member, I wasn’t going to stand by and watch a piece of our community’s history be destroyed,” she said.

Ms Trad said it was up to the council to ensure the works were urgently carried out.