<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/consolidated-properties">Consolidated Properties Group</a> (CPG) is approaching the launch of its latest Brisbane riverfront development, Castile, on the dress circle Skyring Terrace in Newstead.

VIP buyers are now being engaged, with a full public sales launch coming later this year.

Positioned as the final opportunity to secure a new absolute riverfront residence on the East bank of Newstead, Teneriffe or New Farm, Castile at 47 Skyring Terrace has been designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/woods-bagot">Woods Bagot</a> as a timeless addition to the Brisbane skyline.&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150489 project_image_fid=371113]

The name Castile draws on themes of permanence, sophistication and legacy, reflecting a broader vision centred on enduring architecture and timelessness in the rarest of riverfront positions.&nbsp;

CPG Chairman and CEO Don O’Rorke said the project had been envisioned as a future Brisbane icon.&nbsp;

“With 47 metres of direct river frontage and never to be built out views, 47 Skyring Terrace is the definitive address on the Brisbane River,” O’Rorke said.&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150489 project_image_fid=371114]

“Rather than following trend-based apartment design, Castile draws inspiration from Brisbane’s great heritage buildings, reinterpreting classical architecture into a contemporary riverfront landmark designed to stand proudly for the next 100 years,” he said.&nbsp;

The approved development will comprise 227 apartments across a 25-storey tower alongside a boutique six-storey riverfront building of just 12 residences.&nbsp;

Construction is scheduled to commence in September 2026.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=150489]

Joel Robinson

CPG unveils Castile Newstead ahead of upcoming sales launch

Australia’s online shopping habits have shifted dramatically over the last decade. As eCommerce volumes surged, so too did the frustrations that came with traditional parcel delivery: missed deliveries, long Post Office queues, parcel theft and the challenge of being home during business hours.

Australia Post’s Parcel Lockers emerged as one of the more practical responses to that changing consumer behaviour.

What started as a relatively niche delivery option has evolved into a nationwide network of more than 1,400 self-service Parcel Lockers positioned at train stations, shopping centres, supermarkets and Post Offices across the country. The system allows Australians to send, collect and return parcels 24 hours a day, fundamentally changing how many people interact with deliveries.

The appeal is relatively straightforward: flexibility.

Instead of waiting at home for a delivery driver or rushing to a Post Office before closing time, users can direct eligible parcels to a Parcel Locker location of their choice. Once the parcel arrives, Australia Post sends a notification with a collection code or QR access through the AusPost app, allowing customers to retrieve their package at any time within the collection window.

For apartment residents in particular, the system has become increasingly valuable.

Higher-density living has created logistical challenges around deliveries, especially in buildings without concierge services or secure parcel rooms. Missed deliveries are common, while parcel theft has become an increasing concern as online shopping volumes continue to rise.

Australia Post itself has repeatedly highlighted the growing issue of “porch pirates” during peak shopping periods, encouraging customers to use Parcel Lockers as a safer alternative to unattended home deliveries.

That security aspect is one of the key reasons the Australia Post Parcel Locker network has grown so rapidly.

Parcel Lockers are positioned as secure, monitored collection points that reduce the risk of theft while also improving delivery efficiency for Australia Post. Instead of multiple redelivery attempts, parcels can be consolidated into a single secure destination.

The Parcel Lockers themselves are free to use through a MyPost account and support a range of parcel sizes up to 16 kilograms and dimensions of approximately 35 x 44 x 61 centimetres.

Beyond receiving parcels, the system has increasingly become integrated into the broader eCommerce ecosystem.

Customers can now use Parcel Lockers to return online purchases, while retailers have embraced the model as a way to improve delivery success rates and reduce friction in the shopping process. Australia Post has actively expanded partnerships with major retailers and promoted Parcel Lockers as part of a broader out-of-home strategy.

The timing of that expansion aligns with broader changes in Australian shopping behaviour.

The acceleration of online retail during and after the pandemic placed enormous pressure on delivery infrastructure. Parcel volumes reached record highs, particularly during Black Friday and Christmas periods, with Australia Post delivering more than 100 million parcels during peak festive seasons.

That growth forced logistics providers to rethink the “last mile” of delivery, widely regarded as the most expensive and operationally difficult stage of the process.

Parcel Locker systems have increasingly been viewed as part of the long-term solution.

The concept itself is not unique to Australia. Parcel Locker networks have become common globally, particularly across Europe and Asia, where dense urban environments and apartment living create similar logistical challenges. But Australia’s geography and suburban sprawl made adoption slower initially.

Now, however, the convenience factor is driving mainstream usage.

For commuters, Parcel Lockers near train stations allow parcels to be collected on the way home from work. For apartment dwellers, they remove the uncertainty around access and missed deliveries.

The rise of the AusPost app has also streamlined the experience, centralising notifications, tracking and Parcel Locker access into a single platform. Australia Post has increasingly pushed customers toward app-based delivery management, partly as a way to combat phishing scams and fake delivery notifications, which have become more sophisticated in recent years.

The Parcel Locker model is also beginning to influence property development itself.

Parcel management has become a growing consideration in apartment building design, particularly as online shopping becomes embedded in everyday life. Many new residential developments are now incorporating dedicated parcel rooms or Parcel Locker systems into foyers and communal spaces.

For developers, parcel management is increasingly viewed as part of the broader resident amenity offering, alongside gyms, wellness spaces and communal work areas.

That reflects a wider evolution in how residential buildings are designed.

Apartment buyers are placing greater emphasis on convenience, security and operational functionality, particularly in higher-density urban environments. Parcel delivery, once considered a minor operational detail, has become an increasingly important part of that equation.

Australia Post’s Parcel Locker network sits at the centre of that behavioural shift.

What began as a simple alternative delivery option has evolved into a key piece of infrastructure supporting Australia’s growing eCommerce economy and changing urban lifestyles.

And as online shopping continues to expand, the role of Parcel Lockers is likely to become even more embedded in how Australians live, shop and receive goods.

How Australia Post Parcel Lockers changed parcel delivery convenience in Australia

Perth’s new apartment market recorded its strongest quarter of sales since Q4 2021, with 412 apartments sold in Q1 2026 and a record quarterly sold value of $537 million, according to Urbis’ latest Apartment Essentials results.

Urbis said the March quarter result reflects strong, highly product‑specific demand across both ends of the market, from more attainable projects delivering at scale, through to premium stock being absorbed by equity‑rich downsizers.&nbsp;

David Cresp, Partner at Urbis, said the key story in Perth is not demand, it is the market’s ability to convert demand into delivered housing.&nbsp;

“This is the strongest sales quarter since Q4 2021, and it reinforces that demand in Perth is real and it’s local,” David Cresp said. “But the task now is delivery, turning that demand into projects that can actually be built and completed.”&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=110291 project_image_fid=302785]

<h2>Affordable product leads, premium demand remains resilient</h2>

Sales in Q1 were led by more affordable projects, with The Boulevard (SKS Group) recording 115 sales in the quarter, the presentation noting this is only the second time a single project has surpassed 100 quarterly sales. The project was able to offer more affordable housing product right next to a train station.&nbsp;

Palmyra West (Finbar) also delivered strong results with 28 sales in Q1, following 84 sales in Q4, with an average price of under $800,000, underscoring depth of demand for well‑located, attainable new stock.&nbsp;

At the premium end, Urbis said downsizer demand is continuing, with the results highlighting Romeo (Applecross, Finbar) recording 75 sales and reaching almost 50% sold in one quarter.

Jual (Shenton Park, Celsius Property) also posted a strong quarter with 28 sales, reaching 39% sold in one quarter.

Urbis noted that Perth apartment demand is not speculative, not investor‑led, and not uniform, describing it as localised, often equity‑driven and highly product‑specific, a pattern reflected in the polarisation between strong “attainable” performers and premium downsizer product.&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=148957 project_image_fid=364102]

<h2>Prices underpinned by costs, and the delivery risk is growing</h2>

Urbis said pricing pressure is cost not demand‑driven: construction costs and delivery risk are now a central constraint, with the results noting build costs remain elevated and volatile, and that energy, fuel and labour uncertainty weigh on feasibility.

David Cresp said a growing challenge for private Build‑to‑Sell developers is simply securing a builder in the current environment.

“Developers are really feeling the pressure from a building market that was operating at capacity and securing a builder is challenging,” David Cresp said, adding that even where a builder can be secured, “trying to get to the price that makes the development financially viable is incredibly challenging in the current market.”&nbsp;

Urbis’ broader WA commentary also notes that industry remains at or above capacity with lot and housing creation, and that many builders are limiting new sales to manage stretched workforces and fixed‑price contract pressures, conditions that flow directly into apartment feasibility and delivery timing.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=108869 project_image_fid=317905]

<h2>Supply: improving later, but still constrained, and Perth lags eastern benchmarks</h2>

While near‑term supply remains constrained, Urbis’ forecast shows completions lifting “Supply is forecast to be back above 1,500 apartments per annum for the first time since 2019”, with 1,775 completions forecast for 2026, and volumes remaining above that level over the following years.&nbsp;

Looking further ahead, completions are forecast to reach 2,500 in 2028, with the report noting 32% of that total is social/affordable, reflecting the role of government‑supported delivery in rebuilding the pipeline.&nbsp;

However, Urbis said Perth remains behind comparable markets on pipeline scale. In a national comparison of projects under construction, the report shows under construction Perth Build‑to‑Sell (BTS) at 3,446 apartments versus the Gold Coast at 7,922. Mr Cresp said “The challenge for Perth is how to we grow the delivery pipeline”.

Urbis’ conclusion is that Perth’s market is increasingly defined by product discipline and delivery certainty, with the research identifying “delivery certainty is key” and calling out builder risk and procurement models as core success factors, alongside “timing and staging”.&nbsp;

Perth apartment sales hit strongest pace since late 2021 as builder capacity tightens

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/sammut-developments">Sammut Group</a> has secured development approval for its latest Brisbane apartment project, marking the Sydney developer’s next step in expanding its Queensland pipeline following the success of its debut Gold Coast development, Coast.

The approved project at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/44-glen-road-toowong-qld-4066">44 Glen Road, </a><a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/toowong-qld-4066">Toowong</a> will deliver a 15-storey riverfront apartment building with 42 residences, significantly increasing the scale of the site’s previous approval for a smaller luxury scheme. Designed by Bureau^proberts, the development will comprise a mix of predominantly four-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments positioned to maximise Brisbane River and city views.

Sammut Director Julian Sammut said the group had been actively searching Brisbane for several years before identifying Toowong as the right fit.

“Brisbane was the right step for Sammut,” Sammut said.

“With the success of Coast we thought we should definitely look to do more in Queensland alone. We then pushed up to look at Brisbane. We've been looking for I'd say two to three years actually and it was hard to find the right location.”

<img alt="Sammut makes Brisbane apartment play" data-entity-type="" data-entity-uuid="" src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/f_auto,c_limit,w_1440,q_75/https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/field/image/Screenshot%202025-12-23%20at%203.27.14%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=dYAVIL7qdcGA8ojvkslSrLjczXFejSSx" />

Sammut said suburbs including New Farm and Teneriffe were considered before the group ultimately focused on Toowong due to its strong downsizer demographic and limited supply of developable riverfront land.

The site was acquired off-market after what Sammut described as a lengthy negotiation and planning process, with the developer pursuing an uplift to the original approval.

“We are DA approved now which is very exciting,” Sammut said.

“We've had our change approval come through and we've obviously doubled the height, 15 storeys plus rooftop. We've got 42 amazing apartments that are going to be coming to market soon.”

<img alt="Sammut makes Brisbane apartment play" data-entity-type="" data-entity-uuid="" src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,dpr_2.0,q_auto:good/https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202025-12-23%20at%203.27.26%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=ohkRkY0dIZlqdfME2EZePsCQavRiBadE" />

Bureau^proberts said the design responds to Toowong’s evolving urban character, balancing contemporary apartment living with the area’s established residential identity.

“A place where traditional Queensland living has taken place for centuries; Toowong is seeing a shift of contemporary influence, commercial and retail hubs mixed with well-considered residential offerings – all the while maintaining its character and charm,” the architect noted in planning documents submitted to Brisbane City Council.

The architecture practice said the project’s form was shaped by its riverfront setting, flood considerations, neighbouring building scales, and view corridors.

“They said the mix of four and two-bedroom apartments capture the ‘fundamental qualities of Queenslander living,’ translated into the context of a contemporary subtropical building.”

The development sits just off Coronation Drive within walking distance of Toowong’s retail precinct and the upgraded Regatta ferry terminal, while also benefiting from proximity to the incoming green bridge connection to West End. Sammut said the accessibility and amenity offering were central to the site’s appeal.

The approval adds to growing residential activity along the Toowong riverfront, joining nearby projects including Consolidated Properties’ Monarch Residences and Spyre Group’s ARC Residences.

Sammut secures approval for debut Brisbane apartment development in Toowong

Developer Lanevick is heading back into Sydney’s apartment market after focusing more heavily on the luxury townhouse and terrace sector in recent years.

Lanevick, founded and directed by Steve Maroun, is expecting to receive approval in the coming months for a new apartment development in Gladesville, with the aim to launch it to the market later this year.

The 51-apartment project, designed by Studio Johnston, will comprise a mix of one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments positioned toward the Hunters Hill downsizer market.

“Traditionally it’s been difficult for people in that market to downsize because there just hasn’t been the right product available,” Maroun said.

“We’re targeting buyers who might have 30 to 40 per cent of their house value sitting in the bank after downsizing.

“They still want good spacious entertaining areas, they still want quality design, but they also want flexibility and the ability to enjoy life a bit more after working hard for a long time.”

The project sits near Boronia Park and within close proximity to the Parramatta River foreshore, an area Maroun says offers more of a Hunters Hill lifestyle than a traditional apartment precinct.

“From a lifestyle perspective, it’s really more Hunters Hill than Gladesville,” Maroun said. “You’re close to the foreshore, close to parklands, and still connected back into the village precinct.”

From level four and above, apartments will capture water views&nbsp;toward Sydney Harbour. Communal amenity will include rooftop entertaining areas, wellness spaces, and a gym tailored toward owner-occupier buyers.

“We’ve really designed these apartments around that buyer coming from the Hunters Hill LGA and what they’re actually looking for in their next chapter.”

The proposed development has also been designed to respond to the changing character of the broader Gladesville town centre, where a growing number of mixed-use and residential proposals are expected to emerge over the coming years.

“Gladesville presented a rare opportunity to deliver a genuinely design-led residential project within an evolving lifestyle precinct, just moments from the growing Gladesville town centre, and we’ve approached the project with a strong focus on architecture, liveability and long-term community value,” Maroun said.

Maroun said Lanevick saw a first-mover advantage within the precinct as planning controls continue to evolve to accommodate greater housing density.

“We think there’s a real opportunity there that hasn’t really been serviced properly yet,” he said.

“There’s going to be a broader evolution of the whole Gladesville village precinct over time, particularly with more activation and mixed-use outcomes.”

The Venus Street proposal will include a commercial and retail component at ground level designed to contribute to that evolving streetscape activation.

“A big part of the thinking was how do you activate that area properly and create more vibrancy and amenity, which is what Hunters Hill has been looking for,” Maroun said.

Lanevick’s focus since 2020 has largely been on smaller-scale luxury townhouse and terrace developments. The developer recently completed Royale Randwick, also designed by Studio Johnston, where prices reached $3.65 million. The project was featured in the UDIA NSW 2026 Professional Development Prospectus and was also named a finalist for Development of the Year.

&nbsp;

Lanevick to cater for Hunters Hill downsizers with new Gladesville apartment development

Rural Property

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Holten at Kilmore has been listed for auction by Ruralco Property’s local office who expect it to attract local, interstate and even international buyer interest.
The land area of 130 hectares is of productive soils.
It has enabled the vendors to run an average of 40 cows and their calves plus additional replacement heifers over the last seven years.
The 480 O’Grady’s Road property comes with a five-bedroom plus study architect designed.
Then grandly proportioned homestead comes with rendered brick veneer in a Tuscan style.
There is also the inherent future development potential as possible five acre or similar sized small holding and lifestyle subdivisions with quality homes that are already against the southern boundary of this holding.
The vendor says he bought the property with his wife in 2008 to pursue a farming interest as it was within a thirty-minute commute to Melbourne’s northern suburbs down the multi lane Hume Freeway.
But he says that reaching retirement age, having sold his professional practice, and seeing evidence that his physical energy resources are fading, the time has come to downsize.
“Owning and developing Holten, named in honour of my father, has been a great experience but we both feel that downsizing will be right course for the future.
“The next owner should be in a prime position to capitalise on the prospect to subdivide and develop this holding into smaller lifestyle lots which has been happening around us for some years.
He adds “one of the keys here is the location midway between the Kilmore East and Wandong railway stations which are already used by a growing number of city commuters each day, together with the Hume Freeway access to the northern suburbs”.
Adjoining the house is a tiled in ground solar heated swimming pool together with a Plexipave full sized tennis court.
There are seven catchment dams, Broadhurst Creek adjacent to the southern boundary and two annual creeks traversing the Holten property in a 650 mm plus annual rainfall average.
Ruralco Property Kilmore’s selling agent Jeanette Laffan says the expected price estimate for Holten is $2.75 million to $3 million.
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j.ballantyne1990-6AQqhLzZaK

Kilmore rural property expected to attract interest

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Emerald View, a 96 hectare rural lifestyle property in the historic Grandchester district, has been listed for May 5 Ray White auction.
It has been held in the one extended family for the past 147 years.
The family cattle brand (HRO) was the fifth registered cattle brand in Queensland, owned throughout that time by the Rafter and McLaughlin families.
Emerald View has been an ideal farm for grazing - initially a dairy farm but operating as a cattle property since 1968.
Emerald View is located 75 kilometres or just over an hour from the Brisbane CBD.
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/04/6/RWR_Emerald_View_021_R.jpg" alt="">
There are more than 40 acres of fertile alluvial creek flats that have previously been cultivated with around 70% or over 160 acres is cleared.
The house, first built in 1966, was raised in 1987 and extended and renovated six years ago, with wide wraparound varandahs on three sides.
 
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Grandchester farm Emerald View to be sold after 147 years

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The largest rural land parcel at Tuggeranong has been listed for $7.5 million.
Located at <a href="https://www.realcommercial.com.au/property-land+development-act-tuggeranong-502053250">1079 Tharwa Drive</a>, the property sits on the eastern side of the historical Tharwa Bridge.
It has five kilometres of Murrumbidgee River frontage.
It consists of 1342 hectares of river corridor, pasture improved farming land and signficant woodlands.
There is a 99 year lease on the farming land that has been used since the 1850s.
It also has a homestead featuring five bedrooms and two bathrooms along with a large study and separated living areas.
A pool is also available along with a powered shearing shed, farm shed and feed storage sheds.
The farm sits as the gateway to Tharwa Village.
The property is offered through Civium Commercial agent Andrew Smith and Raine and Horne Commercial agents Nick Cotis and Frank Morella.
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Largest rural land parcel at Tuggeranong listed for $7.5 million

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Brisbane-based fashion retailer Michael Josephson and his wife Melissa have bought the historic Boscobel homestead in the Southern Highlands.
They paid $4.3 million for the 1870s-built mansion, which has been the home of recruitment industry boss Steven Hallis since 2007.
It has been on and off the market through for two year most recently listed with Bill Carpenter, of WC Carpenter.
Josephson is the co-founder of the successful lifestyle fashion chain Universal Store.
The 48.5-hectare property in Sutton Forest was the long-time thoroughbred breeding stud of Richard Turnley.
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Boscobel, Sutton Forest sold

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Crowd-funder DomaCom has 90 retail investors now holding a stake in a property in Victoria’s prime Western Districts pastoral land.
The 150-hectare property, Doyles is just outside Casterton near the South Australian border.
It is heartland prime beef cattle region with 11 paddocks of rolling high country fronting Lower Coleraine Road.
Prior to the contract to purchase the property the fund secured a local operator to be the tenant.
DomaCom’s head of property Jason Bennett said the purchased delivered a packaged opportunity to investors to enable them to invest into the rural sector.
"It is expected that investors will receive an estimated combined income and capital return of 10% per annum on their investment, based on historic returns, which is a significant improvement on bank interest," he said.
"More importantly they will have the ability to participate in the strong capital growth currently being experienced in the rural sector."
DomaCom CEO Arthur Naoumidis says the group is “enormously proud” to sign off on its first agriculture crowdfunding project, which has taken about two months to bed down.
“It’s our understanding that this is the first crowdfunding project for agriculture assets anywhere in the world.
"We knew from the Kidman bid that there was a thirst by ‘mum-and-dad’ investors to acquire agriculture assets, and we have been looking at other properties for quite some time.
"We have already more investors on our books looking to invest in this asset class, so we are confident that the Doyles deal is just the first of many.”
Elders’ Hamilton-based David Peardon, who handled the sale, said the first successful crowdfunding exercise to allow retail investors to collectively acquire an agriculture asset was an “exciting development” for the industry.
You can download an eBook from DomaCom on new smart ways to invest in agriculture, here.
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DomaCom investors sign off on first global agriculture crowdfunding deal in Victoria's Western Districts

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The Ashton family have sold Markdale, the NSW country farm with unrivalled pioneering polo history.
The 2250 hectare Binda farm has been held by three generations of Ashton's, most recently by company director Geoff Ashton and high society interior decorator wife Mary.
The 1920s house with extensions by the acclaimed Professor Lesie Wilkinson is set in an Edna Walling-designed garden.
A polo-player weathervane tops the seven bedroom homestead to symbolise the family's long association with the sport.
The undisclosed price sale was negotiated by Richard Royle Director of Colliers International Rural &amp; Agribusiness.  
A family with four boys from Sydney bought the home, continuing that theme.
The father of four polo playing sons, James Ashton, who put Australia on the world polo map, bought the original holding, followed by his son, Geoff snr.
In 1984, Geoff jnr took over the Southern Tablelands property that derives wool production and guesthouse income from its two original stone cottages and the shearers quarters.
Markdale's garden is acknowledged as one of the great country gardens of Australia, rejuvenated in recent years, featuring include a wisteria and rose pergola, several sculptures and lake with its Chinese bridge.
Only once, at Markdale, did the two Australian icons combine their talents, Professor Wilkinson extensions and gardens by Edna Walling
The guestbook shows just how generously the Ashtons have entertained their family and friends there since 1921.
Geoff and Mary have thought about selling it on and off for almost the past two decades, and would love for a buyer to emerge who has a passion for the property, set about two and a half hours drive from Sydney.
James Ashton started as the copy boy on the Hay newspaper before owning it, and in business become chairman of MLC and The Commercial Banking Company of Sydney.
He had four sons Jim, Robert, Geoff and Phil, who began playing polo against his wishes, but persuaded by his wife ‘that those who play together, stay together’ he let them continue.
In the 1930’s, the brothers shipped their horses to England, the United States and India to compete against top international teams, winning numerous tournaments, including England’s Hurlingham Championship and the Indian Empire Shield, and an invincible team in Australia retiring unbeaten in 1938.
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jchancellor-FAypfDUnLy

Historic NSW country farm Markdale sold by Ashton family

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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/70581/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">
GUEST OBSERVER
Rural and regional Australia have had a hard time of late. The economies of Sydney and Melbourne are growing, but much of the rest of their states are not. The population of regional areas is stagnating and agriculture is struggling. 
Perhaps worst of all there is a feeling that no-one in Canberra or in the booming coastal periphery cares about this. The people of Orange have apparently spoken.
Outside Sydney, behind what seems like an impervious sandstone curtain, not all is well. Even the largest towns in regional New South Wales are struggling to retain their populations and have faced difficult economic times through the present decade, although the drought years have faded away.
<h4><img src="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/150658/width754/image-20161219-24265-1sg00b7.png" alt=""></h4>
<div class="enlarge_hint"> </div>
<h4>
Outside the big cities, many populations in regional and rural Australia are declining or static. ABS, Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2014-15, CC BY
</h4>
Agriculture still matters, for employment and exports, but mechanisation has cost jobs. Farming is still how people see rural and regional Australia, but it is certainly not the only thing.
There is more to rural Australia than agriculture, and most places have shifted away from the mass production of agricultural commodities – move over the wheat-sheep belt – towards the marketing of rural lifestyles and landscapes. Farming becomes valuable as scenery.
City people can be tempted for weekends away and old-fashioned farm stays have evolved. But that works most easily for NSW coastal towns – like Berry and Kiama – that are within striking distances of capital cities. More distant inland places have had to work a little harder to diversify.
Ironically, Orange is one of the towns that have led the way in terms of change. An enormously successful FOOD (Food of Orange District) festival has drawn in city crowds and tempted some to remain. At the other end of the state, the Tamworth Country Music Festival has grown every year and been a massive boost to regional income.
<h2>Jumpsuiting on the bandwagon</h2>
But it is probably even smaller towns that have benefited most from festivals. Most successful of all has been Parkes, otherwise simply a transport centre on the wheat and sheep plains. This week it celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Elvis Festival. 
The whim of a handful of townsfolk, one of whom later changed his name to Elvis Lennox, the festival began in a tiny way in 1993. Parkes citizens were doubtful – what had Elvis to do with rural Australia? But the local newspaper, the tourism office and the rugby club – in jumpsuited style – got on board, and the festival boomed.
Once it lasted barely a weekend. Now it lasts five days. Two hundred people came to the first festival – now there are 20,000, almost twice the town’s population. Accommodation is booked five years in advance, home hosting extends to nearby towns like Forbes and even Orange, and tents overflow on Graceland on the Green. 
The festival brings in more than A$10 million, employs many people, and has enabled even improbable local businesses to prosper. The local vet offers “Elvis costumes for the smaller dog”. The two tattoo parlours bring in new seasonal Elvis designs. Only the funeral directors appear to have failed to gain any trickle-down effects.
Certainly luck helps, but inspiration, patience and creativity – which are not only metropolitan traits – really work. Parkes now has its King’s Castle, an Elvis museum that ensures that Elvis and his famous gold lamé suit never leave town.
Where Parkes has succeeded, its neighbours have sought to follow. Trundle, once famous for having the widest main street in the country, is now more famous for its ABBA festival. Kandos, not much further from Parkes, is working hard to develop its Bob Marley Festival. 
Who will claim Leonard Cohen? Unlike Elvis, he at least had visited Australia.
<h2>Musters and other big celebrations</h2>
There is music in the air in NSW and that music is creating employment, placing and keeping some small towns on the map and simply being a source of enjoyment when, as in the drought years of earlier this century, times were particularly tough.
The annual Deni Ute Muster has spurred revival in Deniliquin. The more static Utes in the Paddock – an open-air gallery of utes mounted in a parody of Stonehenge – breathed new life into tiny Ootha. Glen Innes remembered its Celtic ancestry and constructed an impressive circle of standing stones. 
Meanwhile, the citizens of Nyngan, at the centre of Bogan Shire, are trusting that the statue of the Big Bogan (“who stands proud with his mullet, stubbies singlet and Southern Cross tattoo”) will breathe some new life into the town in the wake of the success of the Big Banana in Coffs Harbour. And who could resist Priscilla Queen of the Desert’s birthday bash at Broken Hill’s Broken Heel Festival?
But it is not only festivals. Mountain-biking trails may work just as well. Silverton has protected its heritage buildings and become a centre for the visual arts. Bowral can thank Don Bradman for growing up there. Hill End has set the pace in reviving gold panning.
None of these activities can ever effectively replace agriculture, but all have a part to play in making regional Australia a richer and more vibrant place.
Regional Australia cannot be written off. Services, tourism and the creative industries have become a vital part of the regional mix. And the smartest regions are those that have recognised this, sought diversity and flexibility, and become creative. 
On January 12, the Elvis Express will roll into town, and Parkes will celebrate 25 years of a festival that has created employment, generated income, provided a degree of pleasure in the drought years and given one town more than a reason to hope.
John Connell is professor of Human Geography, University of Sydney and can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/john-connell-94439" target="_blank">here</a>.
Chris Gibson is director, UOW Global Challenges Program &amp; Professor of Human Geography, University of Wollongong and can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/chris-gibson-9277" target="_blank">here</a>.
Both are authors for The Conversation.
 
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Wheat, sheep or Elvis Presley? Rural Australia has had to change its tune

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The Victorian-era country mansion, Tongy that has housed generations of well-heeled pastoralists through 180 years, has been burnt down.
The homestead and 4637ha station is just 5km north of the tiny village of Uarbry, which lost five of its 11 homes in the recent blaze.
Set on the banks of the Talbragar River, the homestead overlooked some of the state’s best black soil plains for crops and cattle farming.
Marshall Baillieu, chief executive of investment bank Rothschild Australia bought the property from family members for ­almost $20 million two years ago.
The estate agent who sold the property Richard Royle said residents had lost their homes, and also lost their businesses.
The Victorian sandstone home had an elegant wraparound veranda and stately central corridor that had featured in a number of films.
It was in 1825 the former convict Richard Fitzgerald was granted freehold title over the property by NSW governor.
Fitzgerald had acted as an overseer of the colony’s early farms.
Until the weekend, sitting at the homestead’s front doorstep was a 150-year old doormat — which was still used everyday and still carried the initials and crest of Fitzgerald.
The Baillieu family bought the property in 1923 from Fitzgerald's five grand daughters. 
Tongy was resold in 2015 within the family after it was offered widely to other investors.
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Tongy, the Baillieu family homestead burnt  

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The Tamworth district farms, Mount View Station (above) and Wildcroft have been listed for sale with an $8.5 million price tag.  
Considered one of the New England’s most prestigious properties, the current landowners have transformed the four 1800s properties on the estate.
It comes with the large Federation era homesead with 11 inch pressed metal ceilings.  
Spanning 2,500 hectares, the land currently serves as soft grazing country housing about 5,000 lambs.
It can be used as tourism accommodation. 
There are over 90 dams with 34 new and 11 key dams. Is infrastructure includes a prerequisite woolshed, sheep and cattle yards, silos and machinery sheds.  
The property has been listed through Gavin Beard of Landmark Tamworth. 
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Mount View Station and Wildcroft listed in Tamworth

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A farm with five adjoining freehold titles at Goomboorian has been sold for $3.5 million.
Located at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property/649-tagigan-rd-goomboorian-qld-4570" target="_blank">649 Tagigan Road</a>, the property consists of 815 acres set 20 minutes east of Gympie and 40 minutes to Noosa. It is two hours to Brisbane.
The five adjoining freehold titles all have road and creek frontage with each tile fenced with new 4 barbs, wooden posts, and steel gates and corners.
The creek runs most, if not all, of the year, with waterholes and billabongs are available as well.
The property has 350 acres of Pangola pasture and 450 acres of Callide and Katambora Rhodes grass.
There is a three bedroom brick home.
Two large rainwater tanks are also available as are the 190 cows that are present on the farm.
The property was offered through Bambling Property agent John Bambling.
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