Arup Brisbane Office leader Paul Wallis said the decision to lease more than 5,500m2 space in the Centenary Square building at 108 Wickham Street was influenced by several factors.
“Both our traditional engineering work and our expanding business consulting services are enjoying robust growth,” Mr Wallis said. “This meant we needed to find additional space in a CBD fringe location offering easy access to clients and good facilities for our staff. The space we are leasing will also allow further expansion as needed.”
Colliers International was the leasing agent for the property. Arup will move in to the building in 2008.
Mr Wallis said Arup was further guided in its choice by the willingness of the building’s owners, Fortius Funds Management, and its builders, Laing O Rourke, to accommodate the company’s specific needs.
“With the building still under development we had the opportunity to influence certain aspects of the construction and include features to further improve the quality of our space,” Mr Wallis said. “One of our concerns was to lease space in a very ‘green’ building and Fortius and Laing O’Rourke were prepared to incorporate our suggestions into the building to aim for a high level of sustainability. Our designers, HBO + EMTB have worked with us to provide high quality design that will assist us to aim for best practice green building standards.
“This move is the start of a really exciting period for Arup in an environment that will be tailored to our needs and will give us long-term security of tenure,” Mr. Wallis said.
Fortius Associate Director Mr Robert Dening said: “We are pleased Arup embraced the opportunity to establish their Brisbane office in our development. The large floorplates, green ethos and exceptional exposure reflect the requirements of most progressive businesses.”
Mr Dening said an added attraction for Arup was the building’s location in Fortitude Valley, and just a short walk to the CBD.
“Fortius is pleased with the result which delivers investors a sustainable building with strong long-term lease covenants. At this stage we still have one remaining floor of 2,250m2 and a number of retail opportunities for any tenant that wishes to capitalise on the total 24,000m2 of office space located on this island site.”
The leasing agent for the property, Colliers International State Director – Office & Retail Leasing, Warwick Wolfe, said the lease was one of the larger transactions this year in the Brisbane CBD, particularly in a building on the fringe. He also expected it to boost the profile of the location in Fortitude Valley as a viable option for major corporate offices.
Mr Wolfe said Arup was looking forward to consolidating its business under a single roof after a tight CBD office market had forced the company to spread across several locations. Currently Arup has its head office at 192 Ann St, known as the Mincom building, has another lease in Adelaide St and was considering a third elsewhere to cater for growth. Mr Wolfe said the site offered Arup 2,200m2 on Level 3 and 1,684m2 on both Levels 4 and 5. The deal comes as tenants increasingly look at other options to counter the tight CBD office market.
“Arup is experiencing good organic growth but to accommodate that expansion they’ve had to acquire space in the Brisbane CBD in a piecemeal fashion,” Mr Wolfe said. “That is far from ideal as they’ve had to divide their staff and services and double up on functions such as reception and office management.
“Arup wasn’t actively in the market – they had only recently renewed a sublease in the Mincom building – but jumped at the opportunity to relocate to a brand new building on the step of the CBD,” he said. “This deal provides a real boost to the profile of Fortitude Valley as a credible destination for corporate offices.”