Southside private hospital plans include hub to find elixir of life

Plans for a private hospital on Brisbane’s southside have been unveiled and include a research hub to explore the elixir of life and stop ageing. SEE THE PLANS

Hub68 is currently on the site and operating as a medical precinct with six GPs and space for another eight more.

Plans are under way for a new private hospital and research hub on Brisbane’s southside, which proposes to investigate drugs to prolong life and stop ageing.

The venture, headed by four Redland business entrepreneurs, is earmarked for land on busy Finucane Rd, at Ormiston behind the former Queensland Country Life press site.

Initial designs are for a five-storey private hospital to be built in a paddock once used for sheep grazing with 1000 underground car parks, medical suites, an aged care facility and a research hub.

Artist impressions show the proposed Cleveland Private Hospital overlooking a bush setting complete with a lake and walkways through a garden to car parks on the 52,000 sqm block.

The site is less than 3km from the Redland (Public) Hospital, Redland Mater Private and the specialist Mater Health Centre in Weippin St.

Mater Private redland and the public Redland Hospital are less than 3km from the Finucane Rd site.

Last year, the state government promised $60 million for an Intensive Care Unit at the Redland Hospital along with a further $50 million for a multistorey car park.

But developers of the new private hospital said the proposed health hub would cater for predicted massive growth in Redland over the next decade.

In the 2020 state budget, spending for a satellite hospital at Redland Bay was allocated.

A plan of the site showing the hospital location next to the aged care housing.

Last week, developers Cleveland Rural, which trades as Hub 68, sent letters to nearby Ormiston and Cleveland residents explaining the private hospital project and asking for feedback.

Responses will be included with plans and sent to Minister for State Development, Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning Steven Miles for approval.

The ministerial designation will allow the plans for the hospital to be assessed without going through lengthy processes with Redland City Council.

However, other aspects of the development including a three-storey independent living residential aged care with 40-bed capacity will need to get Redland City Council approval.

Cleveland Rural managing director Steve Lambourne said his investment group wanted the site to become a one-stop shop for health and wellbeing and would include a large research and training facility.

Last week, the company, which also includes former Labor MP Michael Choi, Redland property developer Warren Pryde and Dr Craig McCombe, spoke with leading researchers and universities in an effort to set up a centre to investigate drugs to stop ageing.

Cleveland Private Hospital developers, from left: Dr Craig McCombe; former ALP MP Michael Choi; businessman Steve Lambourne and Warren Pryde.

“Imagine if we discovered the elixir of life and what that would mean for Redlands,” Mr Lambourne said.

“We would like to use the site for research and one day develop a drug which could extend people’s lives by five years.

“Our hospital facility will be attractive to those who don’t want to battle the traffic into and out of the public hospital in Weippin St and try to find a carpark there.

A map showing the Ormiston block of land in the foreground and Cleveland and Raby Bay in the background.

“The traffic at Weippin St is a nightmare at the moment and is going to get worse when there are another 5000 houses built at Shoreline estate in Redland Bay.”

Mr Lambourne claimed there was a 143 hospital bed shortage in Redland at the moment, which he said he expected to get worse as the population in the suburb of Redland Bay trebled.

Cleveland Rural also owns land in an industrial estate behind the Weippin St medical precinct which Mr Lambourne said would one day be used for manufacturing of medical supplies.

He said it was also hoped the Delancey St health hub would become a university medical training ground for nurses and doctors and would also provide space for not-for-profit community organisations.

The site was first used as the headquarters for the popular Queensland Country Life newspaper headquarters.

The Ormiston site is well known and was sold by Fairfax in 2019 for $7.4 million.

The office space is currently occupied with medical suites for six GPs, a Sullivan and Nicolaides laboratory, psychologists and physios.

The former printing hall is being used by sign printing company SS signs and Vehicle Wraps, owned by Mr Lambourne.