Gold Coast’s Nobby Beach corner for sale for first time in 20 years

ONE of the most coveted corners on the beach side of the Gold Coast Highway is up for grabs for the first time in more than 20 years.

ONE of the most coveted corners on the beach side of the Gold Coast Highway is up for grabs for the first time in more than 20 years.

Widely considered the best corner block in Nobby Beach’s burgeoning commercial hub, the 1555m2 site at 2211 and 2215 Gold Coast Highway has huge development potential.

Owner Michael Kennedy paid $1.7 million for the 0.38 acre site, which extends from Chairlift Avenue around to Lavarack Road, in March, 1993.

Zoned commercial and subject to a three-storey height limit, the site is a short walk from Nobby Beach Surf Club.

The property will go under the hammer at the Gold Coast Turf Club on March 17.

The prime parcel, hailed as “currently under rented and underdeveloped”, is being marketed by Michael Willems of Ray White Commercial Gold Coast.

Area councillor Greg Betts said the site would eventually be serviced by a light rail stop on its doorstep when the track is extended south.

He said council was asked to review the existing three-storey height limit for sites along the Gold Coast Highway from Mermaid Beach to Nobby Beach — including the corner now being offered for sale — when the new City Plan was developed.

“There was a petition asking us to look at heights along the highway strip that came in as part of the public submissions,” Cr Betts said.

“There was a bit of rezoning done but most of the changes happened at the northern end of Mermaid, because that’s where most of the commercial activity is.

“The limit was reset to five storeys along the highway at Mermaid but south of Markeri Street was left as three.”

The Nobby’s corner parcel houses a fully leased, single-storey 817m2 building with 13 retail tenancies — including a post office, pharmacy, medical centre, hairdresser, bakery, cafes and a kebab shop — and a high-visibility advertising billboard.

Cr Betts said it was important to maintain “the residential character of Mermaid Beach”.

“We shouldn’t be fiddling with the backstreets but along the highway I certainly think if there is a reasonable-sized amalgamation of blocks, someone will come in with a taller proposal than three storeys,” he said.

Cr Betts said any five-storey development proposals would need to address the shortage of car parking in Nobby Beach.

“If the height limit was increased, any subsequent redevelopment could include underground parking,” he said.