Taringa, possible TOD?

[ozbob]

From Westside News 10 Sep 2008 click here!

Taringa highrise project shock

Taringa highrise project shock

10 Sep 08

TARINGA residents are concerned their leafy, green and historic suburb could be overshadowed by four, 18-storey skyscrapers to be built near the Taringa railway station.

Resident Pip Ochre said anger among locals had increased as many realised the enormity of the proposed project.

?It has come as a gigantic shock to those residents especially living in narrow streets such as Princess, Adsett, Queens and Kings roads, which will be impacted by the sheer size of the project,? Mr Ochre said.

?We now find local amenities in this area are being destroyed because Brisbane City Council continually changes the goal posts for developers and appears to be disregarding the rights and concerns of local residents,? Mr Ochre said.

?We realise that an application for a Preliminary Development Approval with Brisbane City Council has yet to be lodged for this vast development, but most people I have talked to since two community information and feedback sessions held recently by the developers are aghast.?

The project is being designed by Reading Property Partners and is based on transit oriented development principles.

Mr Ochre said residents could not understand as the acceptable height of development in the area was four storeys.

?Eighteen storeys is unbelievable when you consider the Toowong Village office tower is 12 storeys the developer wants to build three of them,? he said.

Reading Property Partners chief executive officer Douglas Osborne said the vision of the development was to offer a top quality, environmentally sustainable world-class design to benefit Brisbane.

He said a Preliminary Approval Application for the project was expected to be submitted to the Brisbane City Council by the end of the month.

The application is to change the planning scheme to allow taller buildings as outlined in the CityShape 2026 Strategy.

Mr Osborne said Reading was sensitive to the needs and amenity of the local community and would take all feedback on board.

[ozbob]

Article from the Sun Herald 25th January 2009 page 7

Now online Brisbanetimes click here!

Private sector to rescue railway

Private sector to rescue railway
Tony Moore | January 25, 2009 - 7:01AM

PRIVATE developers are under pressure to foot part of the bill to boost Brisbane's straining Citytrain network, while commuters use substandard facilities.

A subway under Indooroopilly Station, where a $27 million upgrade was recently completed, was tainted with sewage for months while Brisbane City Council (BCC) and the State Government sqabbled over who should pay to fix it.

On November 7, the council rejected Queensland Rail's offer to complete the subway, saying it wanted a private developer to pay.

''Council's Civic Cabinet has decided that council will not bring forward upgrade work on its section of the Coonan Street pedestrian tunnel,'' the BCC wrote.

''Council will continue with the process whereby a developer will provide a contribution towards the upgrade.''

The delay means commuters must use the dilapidated thoroughfare for a further 12 months.

Deputy Mayor and infrastructure committee chair Graham Quirk said sewage problems had been fixed but passengers must still wait for the subway to be completed.

''We do want to see this work completed, but it would be appropriate for Queensland Rail to fund the upgrade,'' Cr Quirk said.

''However, in the absence of any funding from them, council will do whatever it can to limit the cost to ratepayers.''

Greens MP for Indooroopilly Ronan Lee said commuters were being ignored.

''The State Government ought to say, `Well, if the Brisbane City Council does not want to do a reasonable upgrade to the subway then that's fine  the State Government will','' he said.

''Rail passengers should not be forced to wade through human sewage to catch a train.''

A doorman at the nearby Indooroopilly Hotel said the subway was a major issue.

''Some nights standing on the door at the hotel, if the wind was coming up from the direction of the train station the stench was enough to make me want to vomit,'' he said.

''Regular patrons to the hotel would always comment on the strench wafting up from the train station. And to think commuters had to walk through that tunnel of sewage.''

The squabble over the station highlights how the State Government and BCC are tripping over themselves to secure private sector funding to boost transport networks.

Private transit-oriented developments (TODs) have been approved for Milton, Albion and Buranda; proposals are being developed for Taringa, Exhibition and Woolloongabba.

Rail lobbyist Robert Dow, of Rail: Back on Track, said private investment  if well directed  could lead to better facilities, particularly in the expensive area of disabled access.

He said Taringa was among several stations that required significant upgrades to meet disability discrimination access (DDA) criteria.

''Taringa ... [is] often quoted as having one of the highest public transport rates in census data, yet Taringa is not a DDA-compliant station,'' Mr Dow said.

Taringa station had narrow platforms and no lifts or ramps, he said.

''There is a subway at one end but that is a bit difficult for people who are disabled.''

Mr Dow said private funding should be tested, but must meet guidelines from Queensland Transport.

''If you can accelerate the upgrade of stations by linking them in with TODs, it is a win-win,'' he said.

He said poor project management was responsible for the situation at Indooroopilly.

Reading Property Partners has lodged a development application to build two commercial towers and two residential towers up to 14 storeys on the Morrow Street side of the station.

Their development promises improvements to Taringa station, but the exact details are yet to be finalised.

Queensland Transport said its priorities for upgrading Brisbane's rail network were not shaped by developers' commercial objectives. It was starting talks with the developers of the Milton and Albion TODs and had requested further information on the developer's plans for Taringa.

''Any interface between the proposed development and the railway station at Milton will have to be DDA compliant,'' a spokeswoman said.

''This will be the responsibility of the developer.

''With regards to the Albion development, the Government is proposing to upgrade the existing pedestrian footbridge with a new DDA-compliant footbridge, connecting to the station platforms, including a contribution from the developer.'

[O_128]

 on the subject of indooropilly why is ony part of the subway new while the other part is old? also is it me or do the new roofs over the platforms look as if they have ot yet been painted

[ozbob]

From the Couriermail Quest click here!

Community unrest over Taringa highrise plan

Community unrest over Taringa highrise plan

   by: Charley Rico, Westside News
   From: Quest Newspapers
   March 27, 2012 9:21AM

More than three years after a proposed development to put three 18-storey buildings near the Taringa railway station was abandoned, there are plans for a nine-storey mixed-use development on the site.

At the corner of Harrys Rd and Morrow St, the development would comprise 76 one, two and three-bedroom units, three floors of underground car parking, five commercial tenancies and a cafe on the ground floor.

The community submission period ended last Wednesday.

Developer Aspect Property Group director Allan Larkin said benefits to the community would include the widening of Harrys Rd to include a cul-de-sac, also known as a "kiss and ride", allowing for easier access to Taringa rail station and also to the cafe.

"We'll also open up the walkways to the train station and it will be better lit, heightening security," Mr Larkin said.

However, angry residents are forming an alliance against the development, planning a community meeting on Sunday.

Resident John Peden said the highrise development would not benefit the community and was "inappropriate" for the area.

He said residents' concerns included traffic issues, damage to local businesses and destruction of the village feel of Taringa.

The community meeting will be held on April 1 at Holy Family Church Hall in Ward St at 4pm.

[O_128]

O shut up, damage to local business? Traffic? Its next to a train station, and its not like the traffic can get any worse.

[#Metro]

Would people support an M.R. on this?

[Gazza]

I think its a bit outside our scope to be honest.

TOD is allied to PT yes, but its more a planning politics, and that's a lot more messy due to people having different notions of "home".

The main thing I'm annoyed about in Taringa (And Indro too) is that the new development on the corner of Swann Rd is going to be a Coles (Coles will also be the new supermarket at Indro)

Is it too much to ask to get a friggen Aldi out this way! Students would love it!

[ozbob]

It is just an news interest story.   The land is still vacant.  I expect they will eventually build the units, but as the council elections are ramping up expect more of these sort of stories.

The GFC killed the earlier project, that would have incorporated a complete rebuild of Taringa rail station.  The latest just seems to be a scaled down version with probably not the work on the station in the same way.  So Taringa rail will stay as is I guess for some time.

[SurfRail]

I wonder if the John Peden quoted is the barrister who we have some dealings with.

[Cam]

Is it too much to ask to get a friggen Aldi out this way! Students would love it!

An Aldi store is under construction in Redbank Plaza. It is going to be far busier than the Supa IGA that it is replacing 

[Gazza]

^But how is that relevant to someone living in St Lucia, Indooroopilly, Taringa, Toowong etc?
Then nearest one is 5km away in Ashgrove, and the one being built at Redbank is 17km away, so it's not like its gonna help is it?

[#Metro]

There is an Aldi going in at Stones Corner as well, replaces the IGA.

Indeed, if there is ANYWHERE in Brisbane that is screaming for more high rise and development, Stone's Corner is it. It has (deep breath) TWO busways and a train station along with the 203/204 and 174/175. *PERFECT* for TOD. Did I mention there is even a bikeway and massive park up the road from it too?

The stores there are all closing down because the fashion stuff is now going out to places like DFO Jindalee, DFO Airport, Harbour Town, The City, and Suburban Centres like Garden City and Carindale.

Jobs are created by spending, if you want vibrant shops you need spending, if you want spending you need PEOPLE.
How do you get locals spending more - put more development there.

[petey3801]

(Coles will also be the new supermarket at Indro)

There is already a Coles in Indro, inside 'Indooroopilly Junction'... Do you mean there is a Coles going in to the extended Indooroopilly Shopping Centre?

[Gazza]

Yes there will be a 2nd one in Indro
http://indooroopillyshopping.com.au/redevelopment/

Scroll right to the bottom

Features of the Centre include
•   Brand new look Myer   •   New look Target and Kmart   •   New dining precinct
•   Fabulous new David Jones   •   120 new specialty stores   •   4,700 car parks
•   Two levels of fashion   •   Gourmet Fresh Food precinct   •   Woolworths and Coles Supermarkets

Thats what is bugging me so much. Do we really need one just 350m from an existing one.
Yet no Aldi in the area

[petey3801]

Yes there will be a 2nd one in Indro
http://indooroopillyshopping.com.au/redevelopment/

Scroll right to the bottom

Features of the Centre include
•   Brand new look Myer   •   New look Target and Kmart   •   New dining precinct
•   Fabulous new David Jones   •   120 new specialty stores   •   4,700 car parks
•   Two levels of fashion   •   Gourmet Fresh Food precinct   •   Woolworths and Coles Supermarkets

Thats what is bugging me so much. Do we really need one just 350m from an existing one.
Yet no Aldi in the area

Oh Lordy! I thought Woolies and Maccas were bad for that!! That is just stupid!!

[ozbob]

For the ALDI desperadoes  --> http://www.aldi.com.au/  you can make up shopping lists ...   

[SurfRail]

There is an Aldi going in at Stones Corner as well, replaces the IGA.

Indeed, if there is ANYWHERE in Brisbane that is screaming for more high rise and development, Stone's Corner is it. It has (deep breath) TWO busways and a train station along with the 203/204 and 174/175. *PERFECT* for TOD. Did I mention there is even a bikeway and massive park up the road from it too?

The stores there are all closing down because the fashion stuff is now going out to places like DFO Jindalee, DFO Airport, Harbour Town, The City, and Suburban Centres like Garden City and Carindale.

Jobs are created by spending, if you want vibrant shops you need spending, if you want spending you need PEOPLE.
How do you get locals spending more - put more development there.

I agree entirely with this, but there is a pretty big sticking point here, which is along the lines of those you have previously touched on in some Perth related discussions. 

The land adjacent to Buranda station is owned by the Anthony John Group (who are responsible for developing Southpoint next to South Bank station).  They got hit badly by the GFC and I doubt will be in a hurry to commit to the kind of density the site needs and was being planned for it (ie multiple 25 storey or so towers).

http://www.anthonyjohngroup.com.au/project-buranda.php
http://www.anthonyjohngroup.com.au/project-southpoint.php

I think they are keeping their powder dry until some more projects approach completion.  The site must be costing them a reasonable amount just to land-bank (selectively increasing rates, land taxes and similar holding costs for strategic properties like these is one way of spurring the developers on...)

They are also responsible for Southgate and East Village (between Cannon Hill station and the 590) and for Emporium in the Valley (CityGlider), just as an aside.

[somebody]

Yes there will be a 2nd one in Indro
http://indooroopillyshopping.com.au/redevelopment/

Scroll right to the bottom

Features of the Centre include
•   Brand new look Myer   •   New look Target and Kmart   •   New dining precinct
•   Fabulous new David Jones   •   120 new specialty stores   •   4,700 car parks
•   Two levels of fashion   •   Gourmet Fresh Food precinct   •   Woolworths and Coles Supermarkets

Thats what is bugging me so much. Do we really need one just 350m from an existing one.
Yet no Aldi in the area

Oh Lordy! I thought Woolies and Maccas were bad for that!! That is just stupid!!

I wouldn't be surprised if the whole Indro Junction centre closes down when the expansion of the main centre opens.  The whole thing was ill conceived from the start.

[SurfRail]

Yes there will be a 2nd one in Indro
http://indooroopillyshopping.com.au/redevelopment/

Scroll right to the bottom

Features of the Centre include
•   Brand new look Myer   •   New look Target and Kmart   •   New dining precinct
•   Fabulous new David Jones   •   120 new specialty stores   •   4,700 car parks
•   Two levels of fashion   •   Gourmet Fresh Food precinct   •   Woolworths and Coles Supermarkets

Thats what is bugging me so much. Do we really need one just 350m from an existing one.
Yet no Aldi in the area

Oh Lordy! I thought Woolies and Maccas were bad for that!! That is just stupid!!

I wouldn't be surprised if the whole Indro Junction centre closes down when the expansion of the main centre opens.  The whole thing was ill conceived from the start.

I have had some very peripheral involvement with Indro Junction, and that seems to be the impression from the property industry.  I have heard some crazy theories about fiddling with the tenancy mix in there to distinguish it from the Shoppingtown, none of which I think has come to fruition.

[#Metro]

The land adjacent to Buranda station is owned by the Anthony John Group (who are responsible for developing Southpoint next to South Bank station).  They got hit badly by the GFC and I doubt will be in a hurry to commit to the kind of density the site needs and was being planned for it (ie multiple 25 storey or so towers).

Not that area, the main strip.

[O_128]

Is it too much to ask to get a friggen Aldi out this way! Students would love it!

An Aldi store is under construction in Redbank Plaza. It is going to be far busier than the Supa IGA that it is replacing 

Rumor has it that ALDI is going in toowong village  , The whole western spur to indro can and will most likely become high density.

[Cam]

^But how is that relevant to someone living in St Lucia, Indooroopilly, Taringa, Toowong etc?
Then nearest one is 5km away in Ashgrove, and the one being built at Redbank is 17km away, so it's not like its gonna help is it?

It won't. However, the fact that Aldi are opening new stores will give some hope to those who don't have a store in their area. Perhaps, Coles may vacate Indooroopilly Junction when their new store opens just a few hundred metres away. This would allow another store/s to open in the area - including Aldi.

A TOD may one day be built where Indooroopilly Junction currently is. It's a convenient spot across the road from Indooroopilly station which is about 10 minutes to the CBD by train. I'd consider living there at the right price. The area has an abundance of retailers & services within walking distance - just no Aldi yet.

[SurfRail]

The land adjacent to Buranda station is owned by the Anthony John Group (who are responsible for developing Southpoint next to South Bank station).  They got hit badly by the GFC and I doubt will be in a hurry to commit to the kind of density the site needs and was being planned for it (ie multiple 25 storey or so towers).

Not that area, the main strip.

His development is probably the easiest way to catalyse the area as he owns that whole site.  I suspect the rest of Stones Corner is the usual complicated mix of ownership which makes it very difficult to coordinate anything, as different landholders have very different objectives.  Once all these towers start popping up, foot traffic will increase massively, meaning bigger trading profits, meaning bigger rents, meaning a higher prospect of renewal and redevelopment by landlords.

Perhaps the BCC could sell the library site off for development in exchange for getting the ground floor in a tower built there, a la Brisbane Square.

[O_128]

The land adjacent to Buranda station is owned by the Anthony John Group (who are responsible for developing Southpoint next to South Bank station).  They got hit badly by the GFC and I doubt will be in a hurry to commit to the kind of density the site needs and was being planned for it (ie multiple 25 storey or so towers).

Not that area, the main strip.

His development is probably the easiest way to catalyse the area as he owns that whole site.  I suspect the rest of Stones Corner is the usual complicated mix of ownership which makes it very difficult to coordinate anything, as different landholders have very different objectives.  Once all these towers start popping up, foot traffic will increase massively, meaning bigger trading profits, meaning bigger rents, meaning a higher prospect of renewal and redevelopment by landlords.

Perhaps the BCC could sell the library site off for development in exchange for getting the ground floor in a tower built there, a la Brisbane Square.

The buranda site is going on the market next year, which means complete room round 2016, this project will change buranda for the better

[ozbob]

It is just an news interest story.   The land is still vacant.  I expect they will eventually build the units, but as the council elections are ramping up expect more of these sort of stories.

The GFC killed the earlier project, that would have incorporated a complete rebuild of Taringa rail station.  The latest just seems to be a scaled down version with probably not the work on the station in the same way.  So Taringa rail will stay as is I guess for some time.

I was at Taringa today for a while.   The block of apartments on the down side of the line near the station is completed, and has some occupants.
There are a number of apartments for sale/rent.
Vara Apartments 1 Harrys Road. http://www.lspp.com.au/residential-for-sale/0000304216.html

Taringa station remains as is.  There was some cosmetic stuff done 2011/12 but it still remains non DDA etc.

[#Metro]

2 Bedroom From $534,000

Wow, there must be some strong demand there if the starting price is half a million!

Perhaps QR should look at getting rid of the current station, putting in high-density TOD and use the funds from that to offset

the cost of a new DDA compliant station with less narrow platforms.

[ozbob]

^ basically that was the original concept, which fell over sadly.

[#Metro]

The reason why the price is so high is because the demand is there but the housing stock people can get their hands on is

limited. It is crazy to reject housing that has great amenity and PT access like this. The zoning isn't taking into account the

benefit of train station in alleviating the need to have so many car parks.


Rather than have a skirmish every time a project comes up, perhaps there should be a "carve out" provision and special

zoning applied within 400m or 800m of a train station. This could be applied once off citywide and then next time this comes

around, it is compliant with the zoning. Indeed, I'm not even sure if there is TOD zoning in the BCC City Plan, does anyone

know??

My understanding is that State land can be exempt from BCC rules - this is how UQ can build all over its campus without

having to go though BCC. Provided that the building is wholly on state land, does the BCC zoning plan apply??

[City Designer]

There is no specific TOD zone in the Queensland Planning Provisions 3.1 and subsequently the Brisbane City Plan 2014.

The closest thing to a TOD zone is the Mixed use zone where a TOD zone precinct could be created. Zone precincts are basically sub-areas of zones.

[#Metro]

Thanks, I think there should be a blanket one just for this purpose.

[Old Northern Road]

Selling off the car park at Taringa station and using the money towards upgrading the station would be the smart thing to do. Taringa doesn't need a car park. In fact it wouldn't surprise me if a lot of the people parking at Taringa aren't commuters but are just people who live in the area

[aldonius]

... Taringa has a car park?

According to the QR station details, it's supposedly got 49 spaces. According to Google Maps... that number is somewhat closer to zero.

[petey3801]

Yep, City end of the station, to the right when looking towards the City and across the road, a small carpark in amongst the trees.

[ozbob]

^ yep!

Entrance from Pike Avenue, cnr of Pike and Princess St.

[aldonius]

Aha! Thanks gents.

[#Metro]

Wow. More people would be served if that were given over to a large apartment development.

In fact, I think Taringa needs a TOD.

The station itself needs major upgrade. I have always found the platforms to be wafer thin.

[aldonius]

If we could get the inner Western line running as up-up-down-down, with expresses consistently on the inside, we could rebuild Taringa and Auchenflower to have just out-side platforms. Alternatively, put expresses on the outside and have a single centre island, which is probably more space-efficient.

I specify up-up-down-down because that makes express stops at Indooroopilly and Toowong a breeze -- both those stations are double island, and hence trains in the same direction will always leave from the same island.

Whichever option gets picked, Milton is still going to be 'bad' in that either there will be unused platforms, or trains going in the same direction will not leave from the same platform/island. (I believe that we're essentially stuck with Milton as it is now that the tower's gone in.)

[SurfRail]

^ Milton isn't as much of an issue at least because it doesn't function as an interchange - it would virtually all be destination and origin (and Origin).

The track layout at Darra only really permits up-down-up-down (assuming Darra-Corinda is fully electrified and a fourth platform built at Oxley).  I think we're stuck with it for the foreseeable future, and therefore the flat crosses near Roma St (unless they built a grade separated connection leading from the down sub to the down main so it no longer crosses the up main at grade.

It might be better off looking at rejigging Darra in some way.  There is no fixing the platforms, but I think it might be possible to make the lines work better and in a way that enables up-up-down-down.  Just south of Corinda also needs some work to enable trains to get from the down main (westernmost track) to the new up main (easternmost) in order to access Tennyson.