The upcoming 2032 Brisbane Olympic and Paralympic Games and associated infrastructure projects will undoubtedly be a huge positive for Brisbane in many ways, and one of the major beneficiaries will be the city’s industrial market.
The upcoming 2032 Brisbane Olympic and Paralympic Games and associated infrastructure projects will undoubtedly be a huge positive for Brisbane in many ways, and one of the major beneficiaries will be the city’s industrial market.
Amid economic uncertainty and interest rates, overall optimism in Brisbane’s industrial market remains strong and the Olympics will be another shot in the arm for the sector in the city.
In the short to medium term cost of living could have an impact on consumer spending, which in turn may impact upon the demand for general warehouse space, but there are two factors counteracting this. One is the underlying fundamentals of the market, being a shortage of supply, and the other is the fact that we anticipate there will be more variety in industrial occupier types moving forward due to demand resulting from massive infrastructure projects in the lead up to the Olympics.
We are expecting to see the mix of industrial demand change over the next few years. We will definitely see an increase in demand for slightly more specialised industrial product, including Low Site Cover facilities, Manufacturing warehouses with gantry cranes, and sometimes just pure hardstand/set down areas for pipes and other key materials being used in large projects.
While the Olympics itself is still nine years away, infrastructure projects will kick off periodically between now and the event, and this ongoing activity means Brisbane will benefit for potentially the next decade.
Some of the major projects indirectly and directly related to the Olympics and preparing Brisbane to be a host city include the Brisbane Metro, Green Bridges and the transformation of Victoria Park at Herston.
There will be the redevelopment of the Gabba, the athletes’ village at Northshore Hamilton and an inner-city sports precinct at Breakfast Creek.
Outer areas of Brisbane’s industrial market could see the biggest rise in demand
While there is a record supply of industrial space forecast for delivery in Brisbane’s market this year, with at least 843,000sq m to be built compared to the city’s long-term average of 357,940sq m, there is still a shortage of industrial space in Brisbane that is expected to persist for some time due to demand.
Due to the already limited industrial land supply, we are expecting some of the outer lying precincts in the West to see more activity in the coming years. Swanbank, Redbank and Bundamba in Ipswich in particular will be precincts to watch, as this is where the majority of undeveloped and vacant industrial land is. It will be ideal for users requiring larger sites, including equipment set down areas. The transport infrastructure in these areas will be a drawcard for users, with access to major routes including the Cunningham Freeway, the Ipswich Motorway, the Centenary Highway, the Logan Motorway and the Warrego Highway.
By Mark Clifford.