As one of Brisbane’s traditional inner-city suburbs, Spring Hill has long been subject to relatively restrictive planning and development controls, which are largely the legacy of an outdated neighbourhood plan.
The release of the draft Spring Hill Renewal Strategy represents the most significant change to planning and development controls for Brisbane’s first suburb in over 30 years. It brings with it opportunities to unlock Spring Hill’s development potential and to become one of the city’s most desirable locations to live.
Key opportunities included in the draft renewal strategy include the expansion of the Principal centre zone; reinforcing Boundary Street as the ‘heart’ of Spring Hill; establishing Astor Terrace as an entertainment destination for the workday and evening economy; and reviewing maximum building heights throughout Spring Hill.
The draft Spring Hill Renewal Strategy sets out the vision and strategic framework for Spring Hill to ‘Accommodate a growing and diverse community’; ‘Support Brisbane as Australia’s New World City’; ‘Create places for people’; and ‘Connect to everything’.
The strategic framework identifies key activity centres along Astor Terrace and Boundary Street, with a focus on higher density residential and mixed-use development in these locations. The strategy will inform the preparation of the statutory neighbourhood plan and forms the basis for infrastructure planning and local enhancement projects for Spring Hill.
The realisation of the document’s vision will be facilitated through changes to statutory mechanisms and the delivery of catalyst projects to unlock potential and attract development in strategic locations.
The draft Spring Hill Renewal Strategy is available for comment until Friday 21 November 2014, with a draft neighbourhood plan anticipated for release in early-mid 2015.
