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Kirstin Ferguson has been appointed to the board of Leighton Holdings as an independent non-executive director, and as part of the construction company's current restructure.
She is currently a non-executive director of SunWater, Hyne and the Queensland Theatre Company, and is completing a PhD in corporate governance. She has also served as an NED with Queensland Rugby Union and as Chairman of the Thiess Advisory Board.
She was the CEO of Sentis before commencing her non-executive career, and a director of corporate services and COO at law firm, Deacons.
Ferguson is a strong advocate for women on boards and in leadership positions, and has previously <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.womensagenda.com.au/career-agenda/leaders/why-you-have-to-earn-a-sponsor/201212091301">shared her advice</a> to aspiring female directors with Women's Agenda.
This article first appeared on <a href="https://www.womensagenda.com.au/" target="_blank">Women's Agenda</a>.
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New female board member for Leightons

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The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has raised concerns over supermarket giant Coles’ proposed bid to buy four Progressive Supa IGA stores in Western Australia.
While Coles has recently been under <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/legal/42614-coles-categorically-denies-bullying-suppliers" target="_blank">scrutiny over allegations it has used its market power to bully suppliers</a>, the company is looking to further expand its market share in the west with the acquisition.
The stores, which are located in the Perth suburb of Dianella and the regional towns of Busselton, Halls Head and Bunbury, are not located close to any other Supa IGA stores in at least three of the four local markets.
While the supermarket duopoly is widely recognised across Australia, the Western Australian market also has to deal with the absence of players such as Aldi, Foodworks and 7-Eleven.
The ACCC said in a <a href="https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/accc-calls-for-comment-on-proposed-acquisition-of-supa-iga-stores-in-wa-by-coles" target="_blank">statement</a> its preliminary view is that the proposed acquisition may result in a substantial lessening of competition.
ACCC Commissioner Dr Jill Walker said market participants had expressed concerns about losing the differentiated offering of their local Progressive Supa IGA stores.
“The ACCC considers that the differentiated offer of the Supa IGA stores reflects a competitive response to rival supermarkets and provides additional choice to consumers,” said Walker.
“The ACCC is also concerned that the proposed acquisition would remove access to Supa IGA promotions for shoppers in these areas.”
According to the ACCC’s issues paper, the newly acquired stores would be within a few hundred meters of existing Coles stores. 
A Coles spokesperson told SmartCompany the supermarket major is considering the issues raised by the ACCC.
John Cummings, president of the WA Independent Grocers Association, told SmartCompany that while the grocery market in WA is still one third Coles, one third Woolworths and one third independents, 30 years ago independent grocers enjoyed a 54% market share.
“What’s happened is over a period of time Coles and Woolworths have acquired independent stores and increased their market share,” says Cummings.
“I think only two stores have gone broke, the rest were bought by Coles and Woolworths.”
Cummings says the WA Independent Grocers Association has long been opposed to these “creeping acquisitions” which eliminate competitive power from the independents left standing.
According to Cummings, if the Busselton acquisition goes ahead, there will be two Coles stores within about 200m of each other, while there would be a difference of about 500m between the two Coles stores in Bunbury.
In Dianella, Cummings says there will be around 15 Coles and Woolworths supermarkets within a 3-5 kilometre radius.
“I mean, there’s got to be huge competition issues,” says Cummings.
Cummings also says small WA suppliers will be affected by the acquisition, as their deals with IGA stores are terminated.
“A lot of local suppliers will be put off the shelf. You have to be a national supplier to be stocked at Woolworths or Coles,” he says.
Cummings says while Coles will likely pay more than the going market rate to secure the IGAs, due to its market power, it is in a position to potentially lose money on the stores – a luxury which an independent grocer doesn’t have.
“That’s why we have the ACCC to maintain competition laws,” says Cummings. “The ACCC are saying [to Coles], this isn’t going to be as easy as you thought it was.”
This article first appeared on <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/" target="_blank">SmartCompany</a>.
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Coles’ bid to buy Supa IGA stores increases concerns over supermarket duopoly in WA

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A former employee of construction and engineering firm John Holland has been awarded compensation and full redundancy entitlements after the Fair Work Commission found he was unfairly dismissed.
In a case that highlights the importance of workplace policies to support <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/people/42020-mental-health-warning-for-smes-cost-to-business-10-9-billion">employees’ mental health</a>, Fair Work found John Holland was aware the employee was suffering from serious mental health issues and should have taken more care when addressing his situation.
Ronaldo Salazar was employed by John Holland Aviation Services in Melbourne as a licensed aircraft mechanical engineer.
The company terminated his employment in December 2013 for alleged serious misconduct. This came after ongoing disputes regarding his work roster and emails, in which he claimed John Holland management was trying to harm him and his family. Salazar had threatened to take his story to Today Tonight or 60 Minutes and the then prime minister Kevin Rudd.
But Fair Work <a href="https://www.fwc.gov.au/documents/decisionssigned/html/2014FWC4030.htm" target="_blank">sided with Salazar</a> and found it was unreasonable for John Holland to conclude the employee had engaged in serious misconduct when sending the threatening email, as the company had evidence of his illness and the medications he was taking in the form of medical certificates.
Commissioner Ryan found Salazar’s defence of his illness and medication provided a strong reason to excuse his conduct and John Holland should have given more consideration to this and his poor English skills when dealing with him.
Ryan ordered compensation be paid to Salazar as John Holland is no longer operating this division of its business and therefore reinstatement would not be possible.
Workplace lawyer Peter Vitale describes the case as “unusual” as Fair Work found “conduct which might ordinarily institute misconduct couldn’t be treated that way by the employer because the employee had engaged in that conduct while suffering from a mental illness”.
While Vitale says there are a number of other factors which influenced Fair Work’s decision, including some confusion between Salazar and John Holland about his qualifications, he says the suggestion an employer is not entitled to rely on the threatening email as serious misconduct “runs counter to the sort of approach taken by the High Court in relation to anti-discrimination laws in the <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/MelbULawRw/2004/17" target="_blank">Purvis case</a>”.
Vitale says the Purvis case involved a teenager who was expelled from his school on the basis of aggressive behaviour that was due to a medical condition. The student claimed he was discriminated against because of his condition. However, the school argued it was not discriminating against him because anyone else acting in this way would have been treated in the same way. The High Court agreed and said the student’s behaviour should be treated in the same way as the behaviour of other students who do not suffer from an illness.
Vitale says there are parallels with the Salazar case.
“It may be that in the circumstances of an unfair dismissal case, the company should have had more regard to the state of the employees’ health. But it would be wrong to see this decision as a blanket endorsement for the proposition that conduct engaged in while suffering mental health issues should be completely disregarded for potential misconduct by any employer,” he says.
However, Vitale says this case highlights the importance of placing an employee’s behaviour in context.
“In the contest of the unfair dismissal regime regarding a fair go all round, it is incumbent on an employer to look at the nature of the conduct and the extent to which it may be influenced by ill health, and work with the employee and medical practitioners to determine whether or not it is likely to happen again,” says Vitale.
SmartCompany contacted John Holland but the company declined to comment.
This article first appeared on <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/" target="_blank">SmartCompany</a>.
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Fair Work rules dismissal of construction and engineering firm employee with known mental health issues unfair

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NAME: Tim Altschwager<img src="/images/2014/07/09/Alschwager-Tim-profile.jpg" alt="" style="float: right;">
POSITION: National director – agency, rural and agribusiness.
COMPANY: Colliers International
OFFICE LOCATION: Adelaide
How long have you been in the industry?
About 10 years.
What’s happening in the area you specialise in?
We are seeing a definite increased focus on rural and agribusiness assets, particularly from overseas purchasers.
Describe the most interesting property you have sold?
We recently sold a large portfolio of land planted to hardwood trees, held in the Australian Sustainable Forestry Investors Fund, to fund manager New Forests.
The portfolio comprised a large compilation of prime Australian plantation forestry/farming land holdings, incorporating 68 properties across South Australia, Victoria and Western Australia, with a total area of approximately 20,657 hectares.
The sale of such a large holding of prime plantation and farming land was rare and as such, the portfolio attracted a great deal of interest from forestry industry participants and many potential purchasers who were attracted to the holding's ongoing rental stream and potential to revert back to grazing/cropping land.
What are the ingredients to being successful in your job?
Communication and persistence.
What aspects of your role do you enjoy the most? 
The negotiation, and consummating the deal.
Where would you invest a spare $750,000? 
I would invest in run-down rural lifestyle land within an hour of a capital city with sub division potential.
Which football team do you support? 
The mighty Collingwood Pies!
What’s your favourite app or techno gadget? 
Google maps, Garmin GPS and Strava cycling app.
How do you use social media? 
<a href="https://au.linkedin.com/in/timaltschwager" target="_blank">LinkedIn</a> is a great professional platform for connecting with others in the industry and  building your personal brand.
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In profile: Colliers International's national director, agency, rural and agribusuness, Tim Altschwager

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GUEST OBSERVATION
Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Glenn Stevens has ticked off on a major item on the “to do” list for Australian policy-makers: raise the rate of growth in labour productivity.
In his keynote speech at the 2014 ESAMACE conference in Hobart last week, Stevens presented data showing that labour productivity – the value of output produced per hour of labour time – increased at an annual rate of 2.0% in the three years to June 2013.
This is a large jump compared with the rate of just 0.9% per annum in the preceding five years, the period which saw higher productivity growth added to the “to do” list. Stevens interpreted the increased rate of growth in labour productivity since 2010 as evidence that “a number of sectors are making serious efforts to control costs and lift productivity”.
Labour productivity is up
The argument that the rate of growth in labour productivity in Australia has accelerated in recent years certainly seems robust. For example, looking at slightly different periods than Stevens, <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B_H1wGTm98W3RTZNV3JIc2FET2M/edit?pli=1">in a recent study</a>, I have also shown an increasing rate of growth in labour productivity over the past decade. I calculate that annual labour productivity growth in Australia was 1.15% per annum from 2003 to 2008 and 1.45% per annum from 2008 to 2013.
What I believe requires more scrutiny is the cause of the acceleration in labour productivity growth. To be able to think properly about the causes of growth in labour productivity it is important to understand one big fact: labour productivity differs hugely between industries.
The mining differential
Taking an average over the period from 2003 to 2013, I find that, for example, at the top of the list, an hour of labour in mining produced output worth almost $320, whereas at the bottom of the list, an hour of labour in the accommodation and food services industry produced output worth just under $32 per hour (expressed in 2010-11 prices). Levels of labour productivity in other industries were between these amounts.
The huge differences in labour productivity between industries are mainly driven by differences in the capital intensity of production between industries. Workers in mining have their labour combined with much larger amounts of capital equipment than in accommodation and food services, and hence an hour of their labour produces a larger value of output.
That labour productivity differs so much between industries has major implications for how we should interpret the causes of a rise in the Australia-wide average level of labour productivity.
Article continues on the next page. Please click below.
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Ways to interpret the data
One way in which labour productivity can rise is the same as Stevens suggested in his speech. This is if workers within all (or many) industries become more productive. For example, suppose that the value of output produced by an hour of labour in mining increased from $320 to $330 and in accommodation and food services increased from $32 to $33. Then that growth in labour productivity within industries will raise the average level of labour productivity in Australia.
There is, however, a second way in which average labour productivity can increase. Suppose that we take a worker who previously had a job in the accommodation and food services industry and switch their job to the mining industry. That worker used to produce output worth $32 per hour, but will now produce output worth $320 per hour. Hence the average level of productivity in Australia will increase because a worker has been switched from a low-productivity industry to a high-productivity industry.
What I find in my analysis of labour productivity over the past decade in Australia is that it is changes in the industry composition of employment – the second way I described above - that have been the main cause of growth. In particular I find that the increases in the proportion of workers in mining have been most influential.
Between 2002-03 and 2012-13 the proportion of total hours worked in Australia accounted for by the mining industry increased from 1.2% to 3.1%. Because labour productivity is so high in the mining industry, this has the effect of raising the average level of labour productivity in Australia. I estimate that, without this shift towards the high productivity mining industry, labour productivity growth in Australia would have been only 0.2% per annum from 2003 to 2008, and 0.1% from 2008 to 2013. So rather than the higher rate of growth in labour productivity reflecting sectors making “serious efforts to contain costs and lift productivity”, I would argue that most of the acceleration in growth simply reflects a faster rate of increase in mining employment.
A different picture
In fact, far from productivity improving within industries, the opposite has happened in some key industries. Between 2003 and 2013 labour productivity in mining fell from $458 per hour to $238 per hour. This is a massive decline and has had the effect of lowering average labour productivity in Australia. I estimate that if labour productivity in mining had remained unchanged from 2003 then the rate of growth in labour productivity in Australia in the past five years would have virtually doubled to 2.8% per annum.
Acceleration in labour productivity growth in recent years therefore should be seen to reflect a shift in employment to the high-productivity mining industry rather than workers within industries becoming more productive. What does this mean for the future of labour productivity growth in Australia?
In the short to medium term it is probably good news. The mining boom is not over, and while the proportion of workers in the mining industry remains at its current high level, we will continue to get the benefit of having more workers in this high productivity industry. We are also likely to benefit from growth in productivity within the mining industry. The level of labour productivity in mining is currently at an historic low. Falling commodity prices are creating an imperative for cost savings in mining that will drive productivity improvement.
But it is also clear that in the longer-run, we face an adjustment. Once the mining boom slows, and workers shift out of that industry into other industries with lower-productivity jobs, there will be a drag on the average level of labour productivity in Australia. Then we really will need improvements in productivity that come from within industries.
Jeff Borland is professor of economics at University of Melbourne.
This article was originally published on <a href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>.
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Labour productivity has risen – but it’s not exactly a good news story

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GUEST OBSERVATION
Heightened competition among home lenders has prompted the banking regulator to issue a reminder of what constitutes prudent lending, but its suggestion that loans being generated by mortgage brokers should come in for scrutiny has not gone down well in some quarters.
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) released a draft prudential practice guide on residential mortgage lending in May, with <a href="https://www.apra.gov.au/mediareleases/pages/14_11.aspx" target="_blank">retiring chairman John Laker</a> saying that “in this environment, APRA is seeing increasing evidence of lending with higher risk characteristics and it does not want this trend to continue”.
Residential mortgages constitute the largest credit exposure in the Australian banking system and APRA has made it clear it wants to ensure prudential lending standards are maintained.
Lending standards apply to the loan origination process, the risk appraisal of the borrower and to the style of mortgage product – including standard mortgage loans, <a href="https://theconversation.com/reverse-mortgages-need-a-rethink-if-theyre-the-new-age-pension-26433" target="_blank">reverse mortgages</a>, home equity lines of credit and interest-only loans. APRA’s draft – which is still the subject of consultation – also provides guidance on hardship loans, “stress-testing” of loan exposures and on mortgage insurance.
The draft has triggered controversy among mortgage brokers, however, because the guidelines encourage banks to scrutinise loans that are originated by brokers. The Mortgage and Finance Association of Australia has questioned whether broker-originated loans are more risky than bank-originated ones.
Mortgage brokers generally assess the financial situation of borrowers, recommend mortgage loan products and lenders, and then manage the application process. It is common in Australia for banks to pay mortgage brokers upfront or ongoing fees for this “origination” of a loan.
Their remuneration is generally tied to the loan amount and is payable by the bank to the broker either upfront or over time. As a result, there could be an incentive for brokers to advise consumers to borrow a higher amount than they might need. Another common practice is for borrowers to be directed to interest-only loans, to be used in combination with a mortgage offset account.
As well as new loans, brokers also help consumers refinance existing mortgages often to purchase additional property. In this process, houses are revalued and consumers can take the opportunity to reduce their equity in a property – in effect, withdrawing cash.
Lenders are happy to originate loans at loan-to-value ratios of 80%, which implies equity funding of 20%. The risk of a mortgage loan decreases over time as the borrower builds up equity. Interest-only loans and loans made with the intention to cash out equity maintain the risk to the lending bank at a high level.
The recent global financial crisis has shown that real estate values and home loan defaults are closely related. Economic downturns can trigger house price devaluations and cause mortgage defaults.
Australian house prices have grown by double-digit percentages in recent years, and some people argue the property market is ripe for a correction. Some home owners would face negative equity if double-digit decreases were to occur and could have incentives to default on their loans. Such a scenario was realised in the US during the GFC, when there was a dramatic increase in default rates.
But the interests of brokers and banks are not necessarily aligned when it comes to the consideration of borrower risk. A broker may have a low incentive to consider risk if they are paid regardless of what happens to the loan in the future.
APRA says that “experience has shown that commissions paid upfront tend to encourage less rigorous attention to loan application quality”. Trailing commissions, which are paid over time, are on the other hand more likely to provide incentives for brokers to retain and monitor customers, it says.
APRA wants to encourage banks to link broker remuneration to mortgage delinquency risk.
There is limited academic research on the issue of whether broker-originated loans are more risky, partly because of the difficulty of accessing this information.
<a href="https://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1162/REST_a_00387" target="_blank">The research that is available</a> does confirm that broker-originated loans are more risky, but it also shows that about three-quarters of this additional risk can be explained by observable information such as higher loan to valuation ratios or lower credit scores.
In response, banks could charge higher risk borrowers an increased mortgage rate, or alternatively, reduce the remuneration it is prepared to pay the broker originating the higher risk loan.
<blockquote>
An economic shock affecting property prices or borrowers’ ability to repay could cause tremors in Australia’s financial system.
</blockquote>
This research is important because it highlights the need for a bank to include this sort of information on risk into its pricing, provisioning, capital and stress-testing calculations – something APRA aims to encourage with its guidance note. It is reasonable to include this cost differential in mortgage pricing and/or broker remuneration.
The current APRA initiative supports the resilience of the Australian financial system and are in line with actions by regulators in other countries, including the US. But more needs to be done.
Australian banks are exposed to mortgages to a larger degree than their international counterparts, with a high allocation to these loans versus other banking products. This means an economic shock affecting property prices or borrowers’ ability to repay could cause tremors in Australia’s financial system. We need to think of creative ways to limit the exposure of Australian lenders to mortgages.
This could occur, for example, by encouraging the internationalisation or diversification of bank assets, something that could be supported by further development of financial market instruments such as covered bonds, derivatives, insurance policies and asset securitisation.
Harry Scheule is associate professor of finance at the <a href="https://www.uts.edu.au/" target="_blank">University of Technology, Sydney</a>. He is a regional director of the Global Association of Risk Professionals. His expertise is in the area of banking, financial risk measurement and management, insurance, mortgages, prudential regulation, securities evaluation and structured finance.
This article was originally published on <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>.
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To tackle risk, address how mortgage brokers are paid

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GUEST OBSERVATION
What are the risks in the economic outlook for Australia?
Typically, prognosticators take a scenario-based (aka “story-telling”) approach to answering this sort of question. And usually these scenarios end up as a litany of woes about what the future holds (such as weak productivity growth, unfunded fiscal liabilities, and highly unfavourable demographic trends).
But for most economists gathering at the Joint Econometric Society Australasian and Australian Conference of Economists Meeting in Hobart this week, the more natural approach to answering this question is to consider formal econometric analysis of the macroeconomic data.
Without going into the gory details of how to do this, I want to provide a sense of what such analysis says about the short-run and long-run risks in the economic outlook for Australia.
I consider two key indicators of economic activity: output growth and inflation. The short-run risks are captured by statistical distributions for these indicators, while the long-run risks relate to possible changes in these distributions.
Short-Run Risks for Australian Output Growth
The graph below plots output growth for Australia and the United States.
Click to open in new window:
<a href="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/51838/area14mp/xrcxbypn-1403487244.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/51838/width668/xrcxbypn-1403487244.jpg" alt=""></a>
Source: James Morley
It’s clear from the graph that output growth for both countries has been much less volatile since the mid-1980s. Economists, who like to label everything as “Great” (e.g., the “Great Depression” and the “Great Recession”), refer to this stabilization as the “Great Moderation”.
Even a casual glance at the graph makes it clear that the Great Moderation was not a myth, as has been asserted by some commentators, but is very real. Yes, the US economy had large negative growth rates in 2008. But since then, output growth has been stable, if lacklustre. Australian output growth also remained stable throughout this period.
The reasons behind the Great Moderation are highly contested. But at least a couple of leading explanations suggest it should persist in the future. The most compelling explanation is that the economy now faces “smaller shocks” due, in part, to a changing structure towards services and away from manufacturing (although the reduced volatility occurs within services and manufacturing, not just due to their shifting importance).
Also, monetary policy likely played some role by stabilising inflation, leading to fewer movements along the “Phillips curve” (i.e., the short-run link between inflation and output). Note, however, that US output growth remained stable after the global financial crisis, despite the US Federal Reserve facing a “zero lower bound” constraint on interest rates. So a paramount role for monetary policy in stabilising output growth is doubtful.
Consistent with the visual impression in the graph above, formal tests suggest the statistical distribution for Australian output growth has remained fixed since the mid-1980s. Based on this distribution, the short-run outlook has real GDP growing at a 3% annualised rate, with a standard deviation of 1.5 percentage points for year-on-year growth summarising the risk in this prediction. In words, output growth could well be 1.5% or 4.5%, but there is a low probability that it will be less than 0% or greater than 6%.
Notably, a major recession along the lines of what happened to the United States in the global crisis is extremely unlikely based on this distribution, although other statistical modelling suggests the probability of some sort of recession for Australia is less remote, but still small, at close to 15% over the next two years.
Short-Run Risks for Australian Inflation
The graph below plots inflation for Australia and the United States.
Click to open in new window:
<a href="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/51839/area14mp/kc5x29v5-1403487244.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/51839/width668/kc5x29v5-1403487244.jpg" alt=""></a>
Source: James Morley
This graph shows that Australian inflation has been lower and less volatile since the early 1990s, especially in comparison to the 1970s. This pattern of stabilisation roughly mirrors that of US inflation, also plotted in the graph, although the timing is a bit later in Australia.
The stabilisation of US inflation in the early 1980s coincides with major changes in the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy at the time, while a link to monetary policy for Australia is strongly supported by the anchoring of inflation expectations (such as the measure also reported in the inflation graph based on the difference between yields for 10-year nominal and real Australian government bonds) at the start of the inflation-targeting era in the early 1990s.
Consistent with the visual impression in the inflation graph and similar to output growth, formal tests suggest a fixed statistical distribution for Australian inflation in recent years, albeit since the early 1990s only when inflation targeting was put in place.
Based on this distribution, the short-run outlook has inflation at a 2.5% annualised rate (exactly the midpoint of the RBA’s target range), with a standard deviation of 1.3 percentage points for year-on-year inflation summarising the risk in this prediction. In words, the headline inflation rate could well be 1% or 4%, but it is unlikely that it will be much more extreme than that.
A major recession might push Australian interest rates to the zero lower bound, along the lines of what has happened in Japan, the United States, and Europe. However, if the RBA were to follow similar unconventional policies to those conducted by the Federal Reserve in recent years, the US experience suggests that inflation volatility should remain contained.
Long-Run Risks for the Australian Economy
The main long-run risks for the Australian economy are that the statistical distributions of output growth and inflation could change in some fundamental way, as they have in the past.
Given the reasons for the past changes discussed above, it seems unlikely that output growth and inflation will return to their pre-Great Moderation patterns. A downside of this is that long-run output growth now appears to be lower than it was in the 1960s and 1970s. Furthermore, there is always a risk that long-run output growth could fall further.
It is notable that the average growth rate for the Australian economy was as high as 5% in the 1960s when worldwide productivity growth was high, but has only been 2.8% over the last decade. At the same time, average growth has been reasonably steady since the mid-1980s. So an imminent end to economic growth, as might be suggested by the most dire scenario-based analysis, is quite unlikely.
The key point is that to really understand the risks in the economic outlook, it is important to step back from a story-telling approach, no matter how compelling, and take an objective look at the data. Doing so provides some encouraging bounds on the likely risks for the Australian economy.
James Morley is professor of economics and associate dean (research) at <a href="https://www.asb.unsw.edu.au/" target="_blank" style="line-height: 1.3em;">Australian School of Business</a>.
Professor James Morley will present an assessment of risks in the outlook for the Australian economy for the “Chief Economists Session” at the Joint Econometric Society Australasian and Australian Conference of Economists Meeting in Hobart on 1-4 July. James Morley receives funding from the Australian Research Council.
This article was originally published on <a href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>.
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Understanding the risks to the Australian economy through data

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NAME: Elliott O’Shea<img src="/images/2014/07/02/oshea-july-2-PFOFILE.jpg" alt="" style="float: right;">
POSITION: Senior negotiator, near city leasing team
COMPANY: JLL
Office Location: Brisbane
How long have you been in the industry?  
I have been in the industry for almost four years starting with Raine &amp; Horne Commercial based in Brisbane’s northern suburbs. During this time I specialised in sales and leasing in the near city areas.  I have recently joined JLL's near city leasing team as a senior negotiator.
What’s happening in the area you specialise in?
Brisbane’s near city leasing market is working out of a challenging 12-24 months in which weaker demand and contractions throughout the market have led to high vacancy rates. However, 2014 has started on a positive note with general sentiment in the office market on the improve and renewed activity in the sub-1,000 square metre office leasing market.
Describe the most interesting property you have sold.
A small retail centre in Brisbane’s fringe suburb of <a href="/news">Red Hill</a> presented a challenging investment sale with an eclectic mix of local tenants all on month to month tenancies.  I was given the task of resetting the leases before marketing the property for sale.  We ended up successfully completing the transaction late 2013 with a local investor in what was a challenging but fulfilling appointment.
What are the ingredients to being successful in your job?
I believe honesty and persistence are equally important characteristics to have.
What aspects of your role do you enjoy the most?
I enjoy meeting and working alongside people with a wealth of experience and knowledge in the property industry and overcoming the day to day challenges that this job continually throws up.   
Where would you invest a spare $750,000?
I would invest in a range of diversified property investments.
Which football team do you support?
Queensland Reds
What’s your favourite app or techno gadget?
My Android phone.  
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In profile: JLL's senior negotiator, near city leasing team, Elliott O'Shea

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Governor Glenn Stevens' July Statement:
At its meeting today, the Board decided to leave the cash rate unchanged at 2.5 per cent.
Growth in the global economy is continuing at a moderate pace, helped by firmer conditions in the advanced countries. China's growth slowed a little earlier in the year but remains generally in line with policymakers' objectives. Commodity prices in historical terms remain high, but some of those important to Australia have declined.
Financial conditions overall remain very accommodative. Long-term interest rates and risk spreads remain low. Emerging market economies are once again receiving capital inflows. Volatility in many financial prices is currently unusually low. Markets appear to be attaching a very low probability to any rise in global interest rates over the period ahead.
In Australia, recent data indicate somewhat firmer growth around the turn of the year, but this resulted mainly from very strong increases in resource exports as new capacity came on stream; smaller increases in such exports are likely in coming quarters. Moderate growth has been occurring in consumer demand. A strong expansion in housing construction is now under way. At the same time, resources sector investment spending is starting to decline significantly. Signs of improvement in investment intentions in some other sectors are emerging, but these plans remain tentative as firms wait for more evidence of improved conditions before committing to significant expansion. Public spending is scheduled to be subdued. Overall, the Bank still expects growth to be a little below trend over the year ahead.
There has been some improvement in indicators for the labour market in recent months, but it will probably be some time yet before unemployment declines consistently. Growth in wages has declined noticeably. If these and other domestic costs remain contained, inflation should remain consistent with the target over the next one to two years, even with lower levels of the exchange rate.
Monetary policy remains accommodative. Interest rates are very low and for some borrowers have edged lower over recent months. Savers continue to look for higher returns in response to low rates on safe instruments. Credit growth has picked up a little, including most recently to businesses. Dwelling prices have increased significantly over the past year, though there have been some signs of a moderation in the pace of increase recently. The exchange rate remains high by historical standards, particularly given the declines in key commodity prices, and hence is offering less assistance than it might in achieving balanced growth in the economy.
Looking ahead, continued accommodative monetary policy should provide support to demand and help growth to strengthen over time. Inflation is expected to be consistent with the 2–3 per cent target over the next two years.
In the Board's judgement, monetary policy is appropriately configured to foster sustainable growth in demand and inflation outcomes consistent with the target. On present indications, the most prudent course is likely to be a period of stability in interest rates.
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Strong expansion in housing construction underway: Glenn Stevens' July statement

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GUEST OBSERVATION
"We are in the coal business. If you want decent hospitals, schools and police on the beat we all need to understand that." – <a href="https://www.news.com.au/national/unesco-slams-great-barrier-reef-management-youve-got-eight-months-to-fix-it/story-e6frfkw0-1226381188474" target="_blank">Queensland Premier Campbell Newman, June 2012</a>.
It was a rare moment of unscripted truth in Australian politics, which summed up decades of national policy.
The Premier was responding to United Nations report on the health of the Great Barrier Reef, warning that it could be listed as a World Heritage site <a href="https://whc.unesco.org/en/danger/" target="_blank">“in danger”</a> unless Australia stepped up its protection of the reef, particularly from increased port development. (The World Heritage Committee is due to discuss it again at a meeting <a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-courting-danger-with-the-great-barrier-reef-20411" target="_blank">in June this year</a>.)
Newman was not just articulating Liberal National Party policy; keeping Australia in the coal business has also been core to Labor’s economic policy for many decades, going back to the “no regrets” approach of <a href="https://apo.org.au/commentary/our-lost-history-climate-change" target="_blank">the Hawke/Keating years</a>.
<img src="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/43769/area14mp/pdr4v67g-1394673302.jpg">
Australia has massive coal resources, as this 2012 map shows. <a class="source" href="/news" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Geoscience Australia</a>, <a class="license" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">CC BY</a>
It’s not hard to see why the bipartisan consensus on coal persists. Coal is the <a href="https://www.dfat.gov.au/tradematters/qld" target="_blank">biggest export earner for Queensland</a> and <a href="https://www.dfat.gov.au/tradematters/nsw" target="_blank">New South Wales</a>, and our second biggest nationally, worth <a href="https://www.dfat.gov.au/publications/trade/trade-at-a-glance-2013/trade_performance_at_a_glance/part03_australias_trade_and_economic_statistics" target="_blank">A$41 billion in 2012</a>.
So here’s the surprising part. Over the past year, Newman has been asking Queenslanders to come up with a 30-year vision for the state, “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nM1rYlhjGVg" target="_blank">beyond politics, and beyond the next 10 elections</a>. It will be a genuine reflection of our collective aspirations for the future.”
Nearly 80,000 people have had their say – and in the draft plan currently under review by the state government, coal doesn’t rate a mention.
By the people, for the people
The Queensland government’s <a href="https://queenslandplan.qld.gov.au/">Queensland Plan</a> is significant because it’s among the most extensive public consultation processes ever undertaken by an Australian or state government. A leading American planning consultant and adviser to the Premier, <a href="https://www.nxtconsulting.com/team">Steven Ames</a>, describes the effort being made to hear views from across the state as a “virtuous circle”:
"Bottom line, the more engaged the public, and the more aware the government of public perceptions, the more effective and long-lasting outcomes that can be expected." – Ames, correspondence with the author.
Launched early last year, there have been major summits in Mackay and Brisbane, dozens of workshops and <a href="https://queenslandplan.qld.gov.au/journey/">hundreds of meetings across the state</a>, as well as online surveys and discussions, all feeding into a <a href="https://queenslandplan.qld.gov.au/journey/public-review-working-draft/assets/qld-plan-working-draft.pdf">draft 30-year plan</a>. The final plan will be <a href="https://queenslandplan.qld.gov.au/next-steps/">released in mid-2014</a>.
Subtitled “Our working draft created by Queenslanders, for Queensland”, the <a href="https://queenslandplan.qld.gov.au/journey/public-review-working-draft/assets/qld-plan-working-draft.pdf">44-page draft plan</a> distills all that community consultation into nine key subjects: education, community, regions, economy, health and well-being, environment, people, infrastructure, and governance.
More thorough than any public opinion poll, the draft Queensland Plan shows that Queenslanders want regional development and livable communities, but importantly they want these to be innovative, sustainable, and supportive of emerging industries.
Surprisingly, “coal” is nowhere to be found in the draft Queensland Plan. Instead, people have expressed a clear preference for developing agriculture, ecotourism, education, research and development, and alternative energy.
Among the top 35 goals outlined are that “We protect the environment” and “We invest in and adopt sustainable and renewable solutions”. Asked “What does success look like?” in achieving that latter goal, Queenslanders have said “Renewable energy will be the norm.”
An animated summary of the draft Queensland Plan and what Queenslanders say they want.
Article continues on next page. Please click below.
<hr class="system-pagebreak">
Envisaging a different future
For so many people from such a coal-reliant state to envisage a generational shift away from coal is remarkable.
<img src="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/43771/area14mp/8f84wdp6-1394673904.jpg">
Coal mines operating in Queensland (shown in red) and coal deposits (shown in yellow). Map created using interactive tools on 13 March 2014. <a class="source" href="https://www.australianminesatlas.gov.au/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Australian Mines Atlas</a>, <a class="license" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">CC BY</a>
But it mirrors some other shifts in public sentiment and behaviour, in which ordinary Australians have moved ahead of politicians – sometimes catching federal and state governments off-guard.
Even a few years ago, who would have confidently predicted the recent trends in rooftop solar power? Certainly not major power companies like AGL, which have <a href="https://reneweconomy.com.au/2014/massive-losses-hit-energyaustralia-as-demand-falls-solar-soars-67443" target="_blank">reported hits to their profits</a> as more Australians try to control their rising power bills by going solar. Between March 2011 and the end of 2013, the proportion of Australian homes with solar panels more than doubled <a href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/latest/three-million-sleep-under-solar-rooftops/story-e6frg90f-1226852425006" target="_blank">from 7.5% in March 2011 to 16%</a>, representing more than 3 million people.
However, imagining a future without significant coal export revenues will be harder for political leaders from both major parties.
For instance, even while the Gillard government was introducing a carbon tax, it went to great lengths to reassure its heartland about the future for coal, with Climate Change Minister <a href="https://www.climatechange.gov.au/ministers/hon-greg-combet-am-mp/media-release/gillard-government-supports-coal-mining-jobs" target="_blank">Greg Combet declaring in 2011</a>: “I can assure coal miners that their industry has a bright future under a carbon price.”
Will politicians listen?
Campbell Newman has shown himself to be a commendably unorthodox political leader in conceiving and championing such an inclusive, forward-thinking process as the Queensland Plan.
Campbell Newman invites Queenslanders to have their say on the state’s future.
So now the question is whether both sides of politics will heed the sentiment so strongly articulated in this bold 30-year community vision for Australia’s leading coal state.
Ultimately, it is a vision that neither the Liberal National Party nor Labor can ignore.
The alternative, as the people have rightly identified, leaves us dependent on the hope that Asia’s major coal consumers will never clean up their own industries. It’s <a href="https://www.smithschool.ox.ac.uk/research/stranded-assets/Stranded%20Down%20Under%20Report.pdf">a risky strategy</a>, as <a href="https://reneweconomy.com.au/2013/iea-casts-doubt-future-queensland-mega-coal-mines-51236">more analysts</a> are warning, particularly as our region’s economic powerhouse and main Australian market, China, has announced its own <a href="https://www.bna.com/china-outlines-environmental-n17179882762/">“war on pollution”</a> – much of it generated by burning coal.
John Cole is executive director, Institute for Resilient Regions at University of Southern Queensland.
John Cole is a member of the finance management committee of the Queensland Trust For Nature, a not-for-profit organisation that buys private property to protect at-risk ecosystems and secures management solutions through commercial contracts on privately-owned land. He was a delegate at the Queensland Plan Brisbane summit in November 2013, participated in a recent online "webjam" as an expert on balancing environmental protection and economic development, and remains actively involved in the Queensland Plan process. However, all opinions in this article are his.
This article was originally published on <a href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>.
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Queensland, Australia’s biggest coal state plans for life beyond coal

Queensland builder-developer MAYD has revealed the first look at its major North Kirra beachfront development, lodging amended plans that reduce the number of apartments and increase the proportion of larger residences.

The project is planned across a substantial 4,742 sqm amalgamated site spanning seven lots at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/2-6-pacific-parade-bilinga-qld-4225">2-6 Pacific Parade</a> and 27-33 Golden Four Drive in Bilin​ga, directly opposite Nor​th Kirra Beach.

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/mayd-group">MAYD</a> secured the site for $32.5 million in 2025, in what was one of the Gold Coast's largest property transactions of the year.

The development will be delivered across two stages, with the first stage carrying an estimated gross realisation value of around $360 million.

The latest amendments seek to reduce the overall apartment count and shift the project further toward the owner-occupier market, with larger residences designed for buyers wanting considerably more space than traditionally offered in a beachfront apartment.

The residential mix will include townhomes, oversized two-bedroom apartments, substantial three-bedroom residences and four-bedroom homes.

MAYD has appointed Cera Stribley to lead the architecture and interiors, with the Melbourne-based design practice drawing on the beachfront setting through a series of ocean-facing terraces and heavily landscaped balconies.

Strong horizontal forms and curved balconies will define the exterior, with subtropical landscaping integrated throughout the building to soften the built form and increase the connection between the residences and the beachfront.

The project will also include an extensive collection of resident wellness and lifestyle facilities, continuing the broader shift across the Gold Coast's luxury apartment market toward larger homes supported by resort-style amenity.

<img alt="MAYD" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="d1bcbb05-e659-4b47-8bd4-1e595315e2ad" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-08-27%20at%202.05.03%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=jj0XEud1X1DuLt7_KyElhjMdZGOXmLHP" />

MAYD Founder Todd Mould said North Kirra was increasingly appealing to buyers attracted to the more established, lower-density character of the southern Gold Coast.

"North Kirra presents one of the most compelling luxury residential opportunities currently emerging in Australia, combining absolute beachfront with the character and authenticity that buyers are increasingly seeking, and the same sense of tight-knit community that defined Burleigh and Currumbin perhaps 10 or 15 years ago," Mould said.

"With Gold Coast Airport on its doorstep, it also offers a level of accessibility that broadens its appeal across almost every market demographic."

The project comes as the southern Gold Coast continues to attract an increasing share of high-end apartment development and buyer activity.

Kirra in particular has emerged as one of the region's more tightly held beachfront markets, with its relatively low-density character, established surf and hospitality scene and proximity to Gold Coast Airport differentiating it from the higher-density markets further north.

Mould said those characteristics had informed the approach MAYD and Cera Stribley had taken to the project.

"We've worked closely with Cera Stribley to create a vision that is deeply connected to its surroundings," he said.

"Inspired by the coastline itself, the architecture has been shaped around space, privacy and resort-style living, creating a collection of homes that reflects the next generation of luxury on the southern Gold Coast."

MOTIV Managing Director Carly Cottam, who has been appointed to market the project, said buyer attention had continued to move south along the Gold Coast.

"Purchasers who may once have defaulted to Broadbeach, Main Beach or Surfers Paradise are increasingly recognising the value of a genuine beachfront location that offers lower density, strong amenity and a more established sense of community," Cottam said.

"Kirra has a powerful combination of growing demand and genuine scarcity. Beachfront supply is inherently constrained, the area remains relatively low density, and buyers are increasingly placing a premium on locations that feel established, uncrowded and authentic rather than heavily developed."

Cottam said the proximity to Gold Coast Airport was also proving increasingly important for interstate and second-home buyers.

"Being minutes from Gold Coast Airport makes it particularly compelling for interstate buyers, frequent travellers and second-home purchasers who can access an authentic coastal lifestyle almost immediately after stepping off a flight."

The acquisition takes MAYD's active development portfolio to more than $500 million, with the North Kirra project representing one of its largest undertakings to date.

MAYD is targeting an early 2027 launch.

Joel Robinson

First look at MAYD's North Kirra mixed-use precinct

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Castle Hill, the longtime hub of the Hills District, has been one of the major beneficiaries of Sydney's Metro expansion, with improved connectivity helping drive continued population growth, development and buyer demand across the Hills District.

But despite that growth, the suburb has seen relatively few major new apartment projects brought to market over the past 18 months.

Hills District developer Reve Group is looking to fill that gap with <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/nova-r-ve-castle-hill-2-garthowen-crescent-castle-hill-nsw-2154">Nova Rêve</a>, a major new mixed-use precinct on the corner of Garthowen Crescent and Old Castle Hill Road, a short walk from Castle Hill Metro Station and Castle Towers.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377679]

The project will comprise three residential towers alongside a hotel, restaurants, cafes and a skybar, more than 1,600 sqm of ground-floor retail and almost an acre of landscaped gardens.

It represents the largest project undertaken by Reve Group, the development arm of the Kassis family, which has been building across the Hills District for more than 30 years through Kassis Homes.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377675]

Nova Rêve also represents a significant step up from the family's first apartment development, Grand Rêve, which was delivered nearby on Garthowen Crescent.

Grand Rêve introduced larger, house-like apartment layouts and premium inclusions including Wolf and Sub-Zero appliances to the Castle Hill market.

Nova Rêve takes that approach to a precinct scale, combining the residential component with hospitality, retail and substantial public and resident landscaping.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377685]

Reve Group Managing Director Sam Kassis said the project reflected the family's three decades of building in the Hills, which has evolved from trophy homes on quarter-acre blocks to larger-scale apartment development.

"Grand Rêve was our first apartment project here and it showed us what this pocket of Castle Hill could be. Nova Rêve is the refinement of that idea: not just apartments, but a place the whole suburb can use," Kassis said.

A key part of that approach is the hotel, which has been designed to operate as an amenity for the wider Castle Hill community rather than solely hotel guests.

It will include restaurants, cafes, skybars and all-day dining, alongside conference and event facilities catering to business functions, community groups and private events.

At ground level, more than 1,600 sqm of shops and cafes will open onto the surrounding streets and landscaped areas.

Almost an acre of gardens designed by Land and Form Studios will run through the precinct, incorporating pathways, seating, barbecue areas and children's play spaces.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377680]

Reve Group's Romio Georges said creating an active ground plane had been central to the planning of Nova Rêve.

"There are gardens with pathways, barbecues, seating and play areas, shops and cafes opening onto the street, and a hotel with restaurants and a skybar that anyone in Castle Hill can walk into," Georges said.

The project's elevated position on one of Sydney's highest ridgelines will also provide apartments with outlooks toward the Sydney skyline, surrounding parkland and the Blue Mountains.

More than 80 per cent of the apartments will occupy corner positions, with Turner responsible for both the architecture and interiors.

&nbsp;

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=152737]

<h3 data-end="3697" data-section-id="q3n5ak" data-start="3672">&nbsp;</h3>
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Nova Rêve arrives as Reve Group bets on Castle Hill's next growth phase

A collection of just 25 large-format apartments and penthouses overlooking Goodwin Park is entering the Coolangatta market, with <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/marea-residences-coolangatta-27-27a-dixon-street-coolangatta-qld-4225">Maréa Residences</a> combining a low-density, residential-only approach with uninterrupted park and Pacific Ocean outlooks.

Located at 27 Dixon Street, Maréa comprises three and four-bedroom residences alongside a limited number of dual-level penthouses, with the project positioned between Goodwin Park and <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/coolangatta-qld-4225">Coolangatta</a>’s coastal precinct.

Construction has commenced, with completion currently estimated for late 2027. Three-bedroom residences are priced from $1.8 million.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150999 project_image_fid=374005]

The project has been designed around its northern outlook across the park, with the building’s architecture, landscaping and material palette intended to establish a connection with the neighbouring green space. The residences have been configured to maximise natural light and views across Goodwin Park towards the ocean.

Inside, the material palette incorporates timber, stone and brushed brass, complemented by curved detailing and ambient lighting. Kitchens and bathrooms carry the same natural material approach, while residences also include basement parking, storage and lift access.

Maréa’s penthouses are arranged over two levels and include private pools, adding another layer to the project’s focus on larger-format apartment living. Across the development, residences are configured with three or four bedrooms rather than the broader mix of smaller apartment types commonly found in larger projects.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150999 project_image_fid=374010]

Resident amenity is concentrated at rooftop level, where landscaped entertaining terraces and pools take advantage of elevated views across Coolangatta and the Pacific Ocean.

The project has so far been particularly well received by local owner-occupiers and downsizers, according to Urban Activation Property Sales and Marketing Director Matt George, with the residential-only format, construction quality and northern park outlook among the features resonating with purchasers.

“The uninterrupted northern aspect overlooking Goodwin Park has been a key point of difference, with buyers attracted to the sense of serenity and open space the park provides, while still enjoying easy access to the ocean and being within walking distance of the lifestyle and amenities Coolangatta has to offer,” George said.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150999 project_image_fid=374002]

“The combination of high-quality construction, a residential-only building, park outlook and proximity to the beach has resonated strongly with the local downsizer market.”

The Dixon Street address is within walking distance of Coolangatta Beach and the broader southern Gold Coast coastline, including the surf breaks at Snapper Rocks and Kirra. Coolangatta’s cafés, restaurants and retail are nearby, while Gold Coast Airport is also within close proximity.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=150999]

Maréa Residences brings parkside apartments to Coolangatta

Melbourne developer PDG has secured Victorian Government approval for its $1.5 billion Southbank development <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-one-1-queens-bridge-street-southbank-vic-3006">The One</a>, clearing the way for the long-dormant riverfront site opposite Crown to finally be developed.

The Minister for Planning has approved the project at 1-29 Queens Bridge Street, with the Department of Transport and Planning issuing the planning permit following its assessment.

The approval will allow PDG to develop the prominent 5,059 sqm site with a major mixed-use tower comprising premium apartments, including branded residences, a luxury hotel and boutique office space.

PDG acquired the site in late 2024, with its position directly opposite Crown's main entrance and near Melbourne's Arts Precinct making it one of Southbank's most significant remaining development opportunities.

<img alt="PDG" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="3933013e-6332-4386-b9be-089df05caf17" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-08-27%20at%209.29.22%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=sITIgBqDL0N3VNSMwWEmF5UA.uvcsRyu" />

Designed by COX in collaboration with ODO and PDG, the tower's architecture draws on the movement of the Yarra River, with six vertical pleats running the height of the sculpted facade.

The project will also see the heritage-listed Queens Bridge Hotel restored and incorporated into the development&nbsp;with new hospitality and public uses, including a rooftop venue.

A significant component of The One will be its residential amenity.

More than 5,000 sqm of resident facilities will be delivered across a single level, making it one of the largest consolidated residential amenity offerings proposed in an Australian apartment development.

The planning approval also incorporates a major upgrade of Queensbridge Square, which PDG will deliver in partnership with the City of Melbourne.

<img alt="PDG" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="73167fcd-1031-4b6f-a408-a064cfe45ed1" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-08-27%20at%209.29.17%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=Pf1AEWxw6SNmBqR0zQW5lyEze.MtxgFp" />

The existing square will be revitalised as a new civic and pedestrian space along the Yarra River, strengthening the connection between the project, Southbank and the riverfront.

PDG Founder and Managing Director Vince Giuliano said the approval represented a major milestone for a site which has remained largely underutilised for more than 15 years.

“This is the most significant Planning Permit approval Melbourne has seen in recent years,” Giuliano said.

“For more than 15 years, this site has remained underutilised. This approval enables us to deliver a project that will contribute meaningfully to the revitalisation of Southbank, restore and reactivate an important heritage building, and create a new civic and hospitality destination for Melbourne.”

The latest approval follows an earlier planning permit issued by the City of Melbourne covering demolition works across part of the site at 9-29 Queens Bridge Street. Those demolition and early works are already underway.

PDG has also started generating early interest in the residential component from owner-occupiers ahead of a planned public launch in early 2027.

PDG secures approval for $1.5bn Southbank apartment development, The One

Local developer Harridan is seeking to turn its Woolloongabba apartment project into the first stage of a broader transformation of Burke Street, using a new 16-storey mixed-use building to establish a greener pedestrian connection toward the rapidly evolving Boggo Road transport and knowledge precinct.

The South East Queensland developer has filed plans for 154 apartments on the <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/4-burke-street-woolloongabba-qld-4102">southern side of Burke Street</a>, where its proposal has been designed alongside a wider vision by LatStudios for the street.

That vision positions the southern side of Burke Street for buildings of 15 storeys and above, while envisaging lower-rise development of up to five storeys on the northern side to transition into Woolloongabba's existing character housing. It also proposes wider pedestrian verges, deep planting, new street trees and upgrades to the pedestrian approach to Boggo Road Station.

The Harridan development itself has been designed by Brisbane-based Arqus Design and will comprise 154 apartments across 16 storeys. The mix is weighted heavily toward two-bedroom apartments, with 121 proposed alongside 10 one-bedroom and 23 three-bedroom residences. There will typically be around 14 units per floor.

A lower-ground car park and three podium levels will accommodate 156 resident parking spaces, along with visitor and commercial parking. There will also be 154 resident bicycle spaces and 40 visitor bicycle parks.

&nbsp;

Harridan is a family-owned developer and part of the Holmwood Highgate Group, with more than three decades of development activity across South East Queensland. Its portfolio spans residential, commercial and industrial property, with current residential projects including Riverbank on Byron in Bulimba, Esperance Residences in Carina and The Precinct at Kinross Road in Thornlands.

Wooloongabba has been popular for apartment developers, particularly since the announcement of the 2032 Summer Olympics games in Brisbane.

While there have been a lot of development applications, it has failed to materialize into real supply.&nbsp;

Sarazin has been the major player in the area. They are under construction at Murcia Residences, on the fringe of East Brisbane and Woolloongabba. They have just launched <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-stanley-residences-woolloongabba-8-trafalgar-street-woolloongabba-qld-4102">The Stanley Residences</a>, in Woolloongabba on Trafalagar Street. They also have Nuage coming soon on the nearby <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/nuage-woolloongabba-14-wellington-road-woolloongabba-qld-4102">Wellington Road</a>.

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