Toowoomba’s Ventia building, Bell Street mall entrance to receive $1m facelift by Barry Bernoth

One of Toowoomba’s most prominent development teams has started work on beautifying a $10.5m CBD building – and it has big implications for a key public space. Details here.

Concept art for the revamped ground floor entrance and walkway of the Ventia building fronting the Bell Street mall.

One of the Toowoomba CBD’s most prominent pedestrian malls will receive a $1m facelift thanks to upgrades by a pair of top developers.

Barry and Mitchell Bernoth have already started work revamping the Ventia building, formerly Easternwell, on Russell St.

But the works will have major impacts for the Bell Street mall, with the Bernoths planning a complete revitalisation of the building’s ground floor entrance and walkway area connecting the pedestrian mall to Russell St.

The upgrades include redesigned amenities like landscaping and seating, a new Stellarossa cafe with alfresco dining and a revamped common areas like the walkway, toilets and foyers.

Concept art for the revamped ground floor entrance and walkway of the Ventia building fronting the Bell Street mall.

Barry Bernoth said the building itself will also be improved in a number of ways, most notably reducing its energy use by more than 30 per cent.

“Downstairs, it will be a largish area (being revamped) because there’s quite a bit of land there that connects to the Bell Street mall,” he said.

“The idea is for a coffee shop and snack takeaway place, certainly for the tenants there in the building but also the public.

“If you were coming through and wanted a cup of coffee, it will be a public place.

“It’s to make it an attractive walkway area.”

Concept art for the revamped ground floor entrance and walkway of the Ventia building fronting the Bell Street mall.

It comes three years after the Bernoths paid $10.5m for the building, citing their confidence in the CBD as the reason behind the purchase.

The building is right next door to the pair’s approved 11-storey parking and residential tower fronting Neil St, which will be built in the future.

Work has started to beautify the ground floor of the Ventia building fronting onto the Bell Street pedestrian mall by property owner Barry Bernoth.

Mr Bernoth said his upgrades would complement the recently-completed revamp of Russell St by the Toowoomba Regional Council, a project for which he was full of praise.

He also noted he would like to see a revitalisation of Bell St in the future.

“With the beautification of Russell Street, which (council) has done a good job on, we thought this would add to that work,” Mr Bernoth said.

“I’m very sympathetic to the CBD and the Chamber of Commerce have got good ideas for improvements for it.

“If you could stroll from Russell to Bell to Neil St (comfortably), it would add to the centre of town.

“Imagine if you had some nice street lighting and a meandering pathway down there, areas where market stalls could go in — it could become a vibrant area of the CBD.”

Mr Bernoth said office space was still available for lease inside the Ventia building.

Developers Barry and Mitchell Bernoth.