Brisbane’s CBD undergoing $12.4bn change, as Eagle Street Pier is demolished

The Brisbane CBD is rapidly changing, with several major transformational projects nearing completion in what is being labelled an “exciting time” to be a part of Australia’s fastest-growing capital city.

The Brisbane CBD is undergoing a significant transformation, with several projects including the Kangaroo Point Green Bridge nearing completion. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen/Courier Mail

Several billion-dollar major construction projects are under way across the Brisbane CBD including the $6.3bn Cross River Rail, $3.6bn Queen’s Wharf, and the $2.5bn Waterfront, as the city remains Australia’s fastest-growing capital city over the past decade .

Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner said the developments will bring about positive changes for locals and visitors.

“It’s an incredibly exciting time for Brisbane as there are so many projects coinciding that will reshape Brisbane as we know it and bring positive change and opportunity for the people who live here, and also for visitors to our great city,” Cr Schrinner said.

Adrian Schrinner the Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner said Brisbane is undergoing significant change. Picture: Steve Pohlner

The Star Casino, Star Hotel, Riverline Park and Neville Bonner Bridge are expected to open by the end of August, with William Street between Elizabeth Street and Margaret Street to re-open at the same time.

The $299m Kangaroo Point Green Bridge is also nearing completion and is expected to open to the public later this year.

The Neville Bonner Bridge is expected to open by the end of August. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen/Courier Mail

The first Brisbane Metro services will also start operating this year, with the turn-up-and-go services expected to carry 30m passengers a year by 2031.

A little further down the track, construction on the Cross River Rail is expected to be completed by 2025, with the new operational line to open in 2026.

Meanwhile, work is progressing on the Waterfront Brisbane project, which is expected to be completed in 2028.

Aerial shot of the works underway at Waterfront Brisbane. Picture: Supplied

Waterfront Brisbane Project Director Matt Beasley said the combined private sector and government investment is a sign of confidence in the city’s future.

“It’s an exciting time to be in Brisbane,” Mr Beasley told The Courier-Mail.

“I think that collectively with the investment from the council and the green bridges, you’ve got a lot of other key precincts investing money, whether it was Howard Smith Wharves, you’ve got the cultural quarter, we’re just about to see the opening of Queen’s Wharf shortly.

“You’ve got the government doing Cross River Rail, which will be a three-and-a-half-minute walk up near Eagle Street from waterfront Brisbane to the new station which will be the busiest station in Brisbane.

“I think it’s a really exciting time and more to come with the Olympic infrastructure which will come to light over the next couple of years.”

Dexus CEO Ross Du Vernet with Waterfront Brisbane Project Director Matthew Beasley. Picture: Supplied

In terms of how his project is progressing, Mr Beasley said the deconstruction of the Eagle Street Pier waterfront complex, which has been part of the Brisbane riverscape for over three decades, is nearing its completion, ahead of construction commencing on Dexus’ Waterfront Brisbane development.

“The first two years of this project that people have seen on site is very much a civil and marine project, which was all primarily driven by the deconstruction of the existing Eagle Street Pier, which had been there for the last 34 years,” Mr Beasley said.

“It is now pretty much just coming to its final completion of the deconstruction phase.

“We’ve got the last little bit of the river walk which is coming out over the next two weeks.”

A render of the Waterfront Brisbane development. Picture: Supplied

Mr Beasley said the next phase of construction will focus on the basement of the first tower.

“We’re now moving into the next phase which is all about the preparations to deliver the basement,” he said.

“What that means is over the next one to two months, there’ll be a lot more large equipment coming to site, which is all about sort of cutting down and doing the basement walls and also the installation of the first tower crane to assist in moving equipment and materials around the site.”

Mr Beasley said early works on the project have also uncovered materials of historical significance.

“As part of the groundworks we’ve actually removed from site a number of piles that are 150-plus years old,” he said.

“We’ve got four of them that we’re showcasing at the lobby of Waterfront Place.

“We have some investigations being done on them to determine where they came from, they also showcase the construction techniques that were in place from 1860 to 1880.

“It is really exciting to have those and we will actually look to showcase them in the public realm when the project finishes as well.”

Announced over six years ago, the $2.5bn Waterfront Brisbane was approved by the Brisbane City Council in 2020.

When completed, the development will have a combined 120,000sq m of office space and retail space, large public plazas opening onto the river, as well as a widened river walk.

Originally published as Brisbane’s CBD undergoing $12.4bn change, as Eagle Street Pier is demolished