Gold Coast development: Retro revamp planned for Nobby Beach
The poll results are in and many give the green light to a brave revamp of a Gold Coast suburb. READ ALL THE DETAILS
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THE poll results are in and many give the green light to a brave revamp of a Gold Coast suburb.
Among the outpouring of comments from readers on plans to change the retail face of Gold Coast oceanfront village Nobby Beach to a 1950s and 1960s feel, one said: “Jobs and infrastructure linked to the light rail. Embrace rather than fight it.”
WHAT THE PLAN IS ALL ABOUT
Under a striking plan by the area’s two biggest commercial landowners, fruiterer George Manettas and developer Daniel Veitch have unveiled complementary developments that will reflect the arched architecture of former Gold Coast landmarks such as the Pink Poodle Motel, the Southport Bathing Pavilion, and the still-standing Sata Nita building in Southport.
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Their impressive-looking three-level ventures will front the Gold Coast highway and flank Lavarack Rd and are intended to be “better than world class”.
They will have ground-level retail, first-floor commercial space, and bars and restaurants and a public pool on each top level.
The Manettas building will be called The Frederick 1841, after Frederick Fowler, a timber hauler and grazier whose cow Nobby went missing near Nobby Beach in the 1880s.
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The other building will be The Oxley 1823, reflecting the name of surveyor John Oxley who led an expedition aboard the Mermaid that took in the Tweed Valley and South Stradbroke Island in 1823.
The Nobby retail strip’s zoning allows buildings of three levels, or up to 15 metres high.
Architect Darren Greenaway, of BDA, yesterday said the proposed buildings would enhance the existing village charm of Nobby Beach.
“There will be a series of laneways and courtyards,” Mr Greenaway said.
“The aim is to draw people on to the sites with these laneways, an eclectic mix of boutique-style tenants, and lush landscaping.
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“We’re aiming for a tree-laced High Street-type location, similar to Hastings St in Noosa and James St in Brisbane – something the Gold Coast does not have.”
Mr Greenaway said the move was intended to benefit from exposure to a light-rail station planned in front of the Nobby shops as part three of the rail corridor.
“People will be able to step off the train, embrace what the new Nobby village will offer, and walk straight down Lavarack Rd to the beach.”
Mr Greenaway said that, subject to approvals, the intention was to start the development in mid-2021 and that project manager Eastview Australia targeted completion ahead of the light-rail extension opening.
Each building would have four basements and between them would provide parking for 680 vehicles, he said.
“That will help take cars out of the area’s residential streets.”
Mr Manettas, who sold the Coco’s shopping centre at Carrara for $23.9 million in 2015, has $11.75 million invested in the shops that run south from Lavarack Rd to Chairlift Ave and sit on 2167 sqm of land.
The $12.8 million investment by Mr Veitch, a 21-year Nobby resident and developer of Broadbeach and Southport apartment towers, takes in properties that span 2406 sqm fronting both the highway and the northern side of Lavarack Rd.
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