(BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA) – Hines, the international real estate firm, announced today that global shared office space company WeWork has signed a 12-year lease for 4,600 square meters (50,000 square feet) at 260 Queen Street, a 13,000-square-meter (140,000-square-foot) office tower located in the heart of Brisbane’s core commercial district, the Golden Triangle. WeWork, which will open mid-2020, will be spread across five levels of the newly refurbished podium space and will house over 700 members, from startups through to large international enterprises.
WeWork’s Head of Real Estate, ANZ, Lachlan Buchanan said, “As we expand our Brisbane portfolio, the addition of 260 Queen Street will offer companies of all scales a light-filled, collaborative and innovative workplace experience Diversity of locations is key to our network strategy, and the position of this site overlooking Post Office Square was a natural fit for WeWork’s community of members, both large and small.”
Originally developed in 1970, Hines and its joint-venture partner Goldman Sachs acquired the landmark asset on the highly visible corner of Queen Street and Post Office Square in July 2018 and has recently appointed Built to undertake an extensive $12.5M refurbishment. This project will see a complete reconfiguration and orientation of the ground floor, replacement of the existing podium façade and significant building services upgrades to reposition the 23-story building and establish it as a best-in-class office tower.
Hines Director, Simon Nasa commented, “We are excited to be rejuvenating one of Brisbane’s most recognizable and well-located commercial office assets. This deal with WeWork further reinforces the strength of this location and, along with the planned refurbishment works, will deliver outstanding amenity for the building and its future occupants.”
Hines Asset Manager, Soosan Kim commented, “Securing WeWork early in the marketing process is testament to the strategy and quality of plans we have for the building. WeWork is an excellent addition to the development.”
The leasing agent in the transaction was Joseph Dean, National Director, Office Leasing at Colliers International
Hines established its platform in Australia in 2011, recognizing the global caliber of one of the most transparent and productive economies in the world. Since entering the Australian market, Hines has acquired, owned, managed and sold more than $500M worth of assets on behalf of various mandates. The Sydney-based Hines team, led by Managing Director David Warneford, is actively seeking to expand the platform to include development and major repositioning opportunities in all of the major Australian cities.
About Hines
Hines is a privately owned global real estate investment firm founded in 1957 with a presence in 214 cities in 24 countries. Hines has approximately $120.6 billion of assets under management, including $66.5 billion for which Hines provides fiduciary investment management services, and $54.1 billion for which Hines provides third-party property-level services. The firm has 128 developments currently underway around the world. Historically, Hines has developed, redeveloped or acquired 1,348 properties, totaling over 444 million square feet. The firm’s current property and asset management portfolio includes 512 properties, representing over 223 million square feet. With extensive experience in investments across the risk spectrum and all property types, and a pioneering commitment to sustainability, Hines is one of the largest and most-respected real estate organizations in the world. Visit www.hines.com for more information.
About WeWork
WeWork is a global shared workspace company, connecting people in beautifully designed spaces to foster a sense of community. A membership model for workspace, WeWork provides over 466,000 members around the world with space, community, and services through both physical and digital offerings. Founded in 2010 in New York City, WeWork currently has 485 physical locations in 105 cities and 28 countries around the world. In Australia, WeWork has over 10,000 members in fifteen open locations across Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, with new locations announced, including our first Perth location which will open in September.
