The Brisbane City Council has approved plans for a new 23-storey commercial office tower to be located next to the Fortitude Valley railway station in Brisbane, Australia. The tower will sit on a 7,000 sq m regeneration site. The commercial office tower will be the first stage of LaSalle Investment Management’s transformation plans for the Valley area. The plans, unveiled last November by LaSalle, show the Fortitude Valley railway station sitting at the centre of an A$500 million ($520 million) master-planned residential, retail and business hub.

According to LaSalle Investment Management, the approval will reinforce the Valley’s renaissance as a business centre and rejuvenate this formerly neglected part of the Valley. LaSalle Investment Management is also planning the development of a 32-storey apartment tower with 207 units and refurbishment of the Valley Metro retail centre.

The current lease of the retail space above the Valley station expires in 2071 and LaSalle Investment Management is in discussions to convert the leasehold interest to freehold. Construction of the commercial tower is subject to tenant pre-commitments, but is expected to start in the next 12 months.