BROOKFIELD MULTIPLEX SCORES $70M BEACH CONTRACT

FOUR years after completing the Hilton Surfers Paradise development global contractor Brookfield Multiplex has returned to the Gold Coast after being awarded the $70 million construction job for The Beach Apartments at Broadbeach.

Brookfield Multiplex has started site works on the $150 million development following strong sales with 122 of the 219 apartments sold since the project was launched late last year.

The construction program will commence with demolition of the existing Beach Hotel, paving the way for completion of the 35-level structure in the fourth quarter of 2017, well ahead of the 2018 Commonwealth Games. 

The Beach Apartments is Brookfield Multiplex's second Gold Coast project since the Hilton Surfers Paradise was completed in 2011 and one of eight projects the company has under way in Queensland.

Brookfield Multiplex regional managing director Rod McDonald says south-east Queensland has long been an area of focus for the company.

"The Gold Coast in particular has been a major part of our focus in recent years and the extent of development activity taking place at present leads us to think this will continue into the future," he says.

"The Beach is one of the first major projects to start construction in what we really see as a new cycle for the Gold Coast which we believe will lead into the Commonwealth Games and beyond."

Gold Coast Mayor Cr Tom Tate, who last week turned the first sod on the project, describes the The Beach as a welcome addition to the Broadbeach skyline which is being buoyed by the $670 million upgrade to Pacific Fair and a new six-star hotel at Jupiters Casino.

"We welcome the significant jobs injection this project will generate and the long-term economic benefit it represents for the Gold Coast," he says.

Earlier this year, McGrath Estate Agents chief executive John McGrath, whose company is marketing the project, referred to the Gold Coast as being part of the south-east Queensland property "golden triangle" for capital growth.

McGrath projects director Steven Chen says sales at The Beach have been strong, in line with the general upswing in sales activity across the Gold Coast."Broadbeach has long been one of the city's most sought after lifestyle precincts and The Beach Apartments is delivering premium but well priced stock to this market which is resonating with a range of buyer groups," Chen says.

"The Beach is one of only a few new projects along the tourist strip currently under construction and they are priced incredibly well for the first movers in the cycle when not a lot of stock is currently on the market."

Brookfield Multiplex has completed 90 projects in Queensland over the past 27 years in the residential, commercial and infrastructure sectors.

The Beach Apartments, a joint venture project between Anthony Moreton Group and Pryde Group, will comprise 219 apartments, up to two bedrooms.