Stones Corner new developments: High street coming back to life
With chic Melbourne-style laneways, heritage building revamps, new health and beauty precincts all online or in the pipeline, this Brisbane suburb is on the move.
Southeast
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A Brisbane southside high-street which, pre-COVID, was struggling with a crisis of dereliction and mass closures is well on its way to making a stunning comeback.
Stones Corner first made its way onto the map with the opening of the Junction Hotel in 1890 (now the Stones Corner Hotel) and from about the 1950s – 1990s had its “discount retail heyday”, drawing mass amount of foot traffic.
Yet the early 2000s saw it fall upon hard times, and there were periods were more than 15 ‘For Lease’ signs dotted the deserted streets.
Not anymore – the South-East Advertiser has compiled a list of six recently completed or future projects which are changing perceptions of Stones Corner and returning it to its rightful place as a jewel in Brisbane retail’s crown.
1) Penney’s Building restoration – 357 Logan Rd
Built in 1938 by company Burns Philp and Co as a chain store, Penney’s Building has been a Stones Corner landmark for generations and housed one of Brisbane’s first coffee shops in the 1950s.
Latterly known as Stones Corner Plaza, the building with the striking Art Deco facade had fallen into disrepair and had a high vacancy rate before developers DeMartini Fletcher Property swooped in.
Under their plans, the heritage-listed facade will be retained and share a frontage with a new three-level office building.
According to the project page on the DMF website, the new building will be fitted out with “timber trusses, exposed brick interior, internal foliage, repurposed high bay windows, glass facade and high ceilings”.
They are appealing especially to “office and tech-savvy” businesses, offering anywhere between 287 sqm – 2013 sqm of lettable area.
The building offers dual street access to Cleveland St and Logan Rd and includes 29 staff carparks at the rear of the building.
Initial works commenced in early-2021.
2) Bower Lane, 433 Logan Rd
Purchased in late-2017 by Seymour Group, serviced business centre The Bower was completed at the end of 2019.
However, it’s the chic, sexy, Melbourne-style laneway underneath, Bower Lane, which has chins wagging in the neighbourhood.
Its seven tenancies are bookended by charming coffee joint Buenos Dias Con Café and Brisbane burger favourite Brooklyn Depot (opening mid-February) and all bar one are leased.
They include salons Pelo Style and Chic Hair Lounge, and podiatrist Foot + Ankle Clinics.
Seymour Group’s Scott Blakeway said Bower Lane is all about bringing a bit of “personality” to the Montague St end of Logan Rd.
He said the new retailers have been activated by Seymour Group’s decision to “pull the front of the building out” to the street, a decision which will put the future Brooklyn Depot right in the eyeline of passers-by.
“We’ve got a decent mix of retailers and we’re trying to change perceptions (of the area),” Mr Blakeway said.
“There hasn’t been a good, diverse offering for the past 10 years.”
He noted the recent densification of the suburb – a trend which shows no sign of abating (see numbers five and six further down this list) – and the promise of the future Eastern Transitway project are continuing to drive Stones Corner’s forward.
3) Health and allied services precinct, 416 Logan Rd
Formerly a tired-looking, nondescript ochre brick building full of accountants, clothing and accessories stores and drycleaners, the owners of 416 Logan Rd have initiated an extensive renovation, due for completion in March.
McGees Property agent Gavin Moore said he has been in “extensive negotiations” with prospective tenants from the allied health industry to join the existing doctor’s surgery and dentists and up to 10 tenants may be possible.
He said a gym was slated to move in, but that unfortunately fell over due to COVID-19.
Mr Moore said the old building was “at that age” where the market “demands” refurbishment.
He said the problem Stones Corner has faced previously is poor daytime trade due to a “lack of residential density” and fragmented ownership of buildings meaning difficulties in achieving economies of scale.
Mr Moore said both issues are well on their way to being resolved.
“We’re delighted where Stones Corner is going,” he said.
4) Freedom Suites, 392 Logan Rd
Opening in October 2019 but only finding its groove in mid-2020, Freedom Suites Stones Corner was the hair and beauty freelance hub’s second location in Queensland – it now has five in the Sunshine State, with a further three due by May.
Co-founder Gavin Hinton said the 19-suite Stones Corner location has proven so popular, they are now “beyond capacity”.
The moving in en-masse of hair and beauty professionals has had a flow-on effect to other nearby business too.
Mr Hinton said, if his 19 freelancers see six clients per day, that is nearly 120 extra people per day and 1000 per week who are being brought to the Stones Corner precinct.
He said this has been an especial boon for nearby cafes, several of which provide takeaways directly to Freedom Suites, comprising up to 50 per cent of trade for one business.
Books @ Stones co-owner Karen Weibler concurred, saying she had seen an increase in patronage to her store driven by people either waiting for or having finished an appointment at Freedom Suites.
Mr Hinton said COVID-19 was counterintuitively good for Freedom Suites, as the 9 sqm suites allowed for social distancing.
5) Cello Apartments, cnr Cleveland and Flora streets
Comprising two boutique, eight-storey apartments, Cello offers the opportunity for hundreds more people to call Stones Corner home and become regulars at its myriad cafes, bars and op shops.
Developed by CS Development Group, the project is slated for completion in May 2021, with the latest construction update (October – November 2020) boasting CSDG is “ahead of our construction progress schedule, and on track for a timely completion”.
Roofs on both towers are complete while the fit out of Tower 1 is also finished.
When unveiled, Cello will boast a multipurpose gym, steam room and sauna, pool and spa, boardroom and library, as well as rooftop entertaining area.
6) Mixed-use residential tower, 66 Cleveland St
Approved in late-2020 after multiple revisions of the submitted plans, this eight-storey, mixed-use development by Montague Developments is well under way, with road closures in place in Cleveland St to facilitate its construction.
Montague’s development manager Mark Stuart said the tower is due for completion in April – May and contains 63 one- and two-bedroom dwellings over seven floors, with the ground floor to contain 300 sqm lettable area for commercial tenants.
Mr Stuart said Montague is hoping to attract a food and beverage outlet and a “hole-in-the-wall” coffee shop in the smallest tenancy to provide as much amenity to residents as possible.
The development will also feature a rooftop infinity pool and outdoor kitchen.
He said Montague is excited by the potential of Stones Corner.
“Stones Corner is geographically so well placed,” Mr Stuart said.
“It’s had a long gestation period and been quite untapped until recently.
“There are few locations so near the CBD with their own high-street.
“It’s been struggling in recent years with having to re-identify itself since the demise of its factory outlets.
“But it’s becoming reinvigorated.”
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