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Hamilton Among the Highest Valued Brisbane Suburbs

The third-quarter of 2018 saw Brisbane, the Sunshine Coast, and the Gold Coast delivering strong performances for Queensland despite the perceived downturn in the Australian property market. Brisbane records a new all-time high for median house price over the past year with several of its suburbs hitting the $1-million annual median sale, including Hamilton.

Brisbane recorded an annual median house price increase of 2.3 percent from last year with a new record high of $675,000, according to the September quarter of the REIQ Queensland Market Monitor report. The Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast SD, on the other hand, recorded growth of 3.8 percent and 6.3 percent, respectively.

In the Brisbane LGA, the most in-demand price range is $500,000 – $750,000, representing almost half of the house sales for the past 12 months. Whilst several suburbs have hit $1-million median house price mark, with Hamilton posting an annual median sale of $1.4 million from last year’s $1.1 million. Teneriffe tops the list with $1.79 million, with Brookfield, New Farm, Ascot, Bulimba, Pullenvale, Hawthorne, Clayfield, and St Lucia rounding out the top-ten.

Hamilton, Queensland 4007 Australia

“Queensland’s economy is proving itself to be a good performer, against a backdrop of national gloom, with new jobs bringing population growth and demand for housing,” REIQ CEO Antonia Mercorella said.

“The southeast corner is our powerhouse, without a doubt, but additionally we’re seeing strong results in regions that have been struggling.

“The resources sector is improving and we’re seeing regions such as Mackay and areas of western Queensland firmly in recovery,” Ms Mercorella said.

The same could not be said about the unit market, on the other hand, as it continues to succumb to the pressure of market oversupply. Brisbane LGA annual median unit price dropped by 2.2 per cent to $440,000, but good enough to register a 5.5 percent growth over the last five years.

A few suburbs still managed to post double digit growth, though, with Rochedale leading with 64.80% increase from last year, along with Gordon Park, North Gate, Yeronga, Toowong, New Market, and Red Hill.

Donate Canned Goods and Waive Outstanding Library Fees at Hamilton Library

As part of the Council’s Library Amnesty 2018, Hamilton Library is offering to waive outstanding library fees for the entire month of December 2018.

The latest initiative from Brisbane libraries aims to waive overdue fines, processing, and holds fees in exchange for a donation of canned food.

The library amnesty allows customers to get into the spirit of Christmas by donating canned goods to those in need whilst having all of their overdue fees waived.

Customers with overdue books or those who already returned their books but have incurred fees can benefit from the program. All you have to do is donate a can of food to have all the fees waived.

All of the canned food collected from the library amnesty will go to Foodbank Queensland. This not-for-profit organisation distributes food to charities and community organisations who assist those in need.

Friendly reminder: Hamilton library will not accept perishable food items and the amnesty will not cover lost library items.

Hamilton library will be having the library amnesty until Monday, 31 December 2018. Residents without overdue fees are also welcome to donate canned goods to the library.

Fun Holiday Activities at Hamilton’s Eat Street Northshore

Eat Street Northshore has been one of the most visited places in Hamilton. From a variety of food choices to great family-friendly entertainment, the precinct offers lots of activities for everyone to enjoy.

For this month, Eat Street Northshore is hosting fun Christmas and summer-themed events for guests of all ages to enjoy. Check out these fun weekend activities that will be available this December.

Christmas Snow Globe

Multiple Dates

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by EAT STREET NORTHSHORE (@eatstreet) on Dec 6, 2018 at 12:43am PST

Happening every Friday and Saturday, Eat Street Northshore will let you cool down with your family and friends will a little snow this summer.

Chill out in a blanket of “snow” or have a snow fight inside the “Snow Globe”.

The Snow Globe team can also take your pictures on your device whilst you’re inside the Christmas Snow Globe.

The Christmas Snow Globe will be in the 7 OpenSky Theatre from 4:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. on the following dates: 7-8, 14-15, and 21-23, December 2018.

Entry costs $8 per group. Up to six people can enter together at any one time.

Location: 7 OpenSky Theatre

Free Mega WaterSlide Festival

Sundays, 9,16, and 23 December 2018 (11:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.)

Photo credit: Eat Street Northshore/Facebook

Just in time for summer, kids can enjoy several themed slides for free at Eat Street Northshore.

The mega slides will be available every Sunday leading up to Christmas.

Located next to the precinct’s Hello entry, the park will be filled with five new waterslides. Slide themes include The Shark, Double Lane, Candy Rush, Pirate Ship, and Green Safari.

General entry to Eat Street Northshore is $3 for guests who are 13 years and over. Entry is free for kids ages 12 and below.

Location: Outside the Hello Gate entrance.

Roadworks to Connect Incoming Cruise Ship Terminal Will Commence Early 2019

Close to $11 million worth of roadworks between Kingsford Smith Drive and Luggage Point to connect the incoming mega cruise ship terminal, to commence in March 2019.

Tenders for the road network upgrade have gone out early November and will close before Christmas. Lord mayor Graham Quirk indicated that half of the cost will be provided by the Council.

The project will involve raising very low flood-risk roads, widening other roads, and improving lighting and safety. Once completed, the project will allow buses and larger vehicles access to the network of roads to connect passengers with hotels and other destinations.

Opposition leader Peter Cumming stressed the importance of the new cruise ship terminal for Brisbane. They support the decision of the council to get involved in the Port of Brisbane’s project considering its impact on tourism. Queensland is Australia’s top cruise destination contributing around $1.1 billion to QLD’s economy whilst Brisbane ranks second to Sydney as the biggest cruise ship port.

Whilst the road upgrade was backed by Labor opposition, outspoken Greens Councillor Sri expressed disapproval over the project. Cr Sri was particularly concerned about the environmental impact of having more cruise ships in Moreton Bay. Independent councillor for Tennyson Nicole Johnston, on the other hand, questioned the council’s decision to fund the other half of the project.

South-East Queensland’s first mega cruise ship terminal

Video Credit: PortofBrisbanePtyLtd
/YouTube

The road network upgrade entails improvements to be done on Main Myrtletown Road, Priors Road, Bancroft Road, Brownlee Street, Main Beach Road and Marine Road at Pinkenba. Currently, cruise ships more than 270 metres in length berth at the Port of Brisbane’s Fisherman Island whilst smaller ships dock at Portside Wharf at Hamilton.

The new $158 million Brisbane International Cruise Terminal is expected to be completed by mid-2020 and is projected to generate almost $5 billion in economic value to QLD alone within a period of 15 years.

Hamilton Leads Best Performers List in Brisbane LGA; Ranks Among Top Performers in QLD

From July 2017 to June 2018, a total of 13 suburbs reached a capital growth of 10 percent or higher, with Hamilton leading the Best Performers list in Brisbane LGA, according to latest research.

“It’s a great market to be in at the moment.” That’s how REIQ CEO Antonia Mercorella describes Queensland’s exceptional performance amidst the gloomy predictions coming out for the property market, recently.

In fact, 68 suburbs throughout Queensland have registered remarkable double-digit growths over this 12-month period.

“The top area delivering the strongest growth has been Blackwater, with 151 percent growth. This is a results of the resurgence in coal prices and the low base starting point,” Ms Mercorella said.

Suburbs in Brisbane LGA that reached an annual price growth of more than 10 percent according to REIQ “Queensland Market Monitor” Report:

Hamilton
Sandgate
Paddington
Mount Ommaney
Sunnybank
Graceville
Hendra
Shorncliffe
Seven Hills
Nundah
Kedron
Bulimba
Auchenflower

Hamilton was the top performer in Brisbane LGA and fifth in Queensland with an impressive house prices increase for the past year of 32.9 percent. With an average house price of $1,442,000, Hamilton also has the distinction of being the most expensive suburb on the list of QLD best performers.

*Photo Credit: Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ)/reiq.com*

Suburbs in QLD that reached an annual price growth of more than 20 percent according to REIQ “Queensland Market Monitor” Report:

Blackwater
Spring Mountain (Ipswich)
Collinsville
Minyama (Sunshine Coast)
Hamilton
Hollywell (Gold Coast)
Miles
Mount Coolum
Dundowran Beach (Fraser Coast)
Boonah (Scenic Rim)
Idalia (Townsville)

Whilst, this is a good indication of steady growth, Ms Mercorella cautions against “boom” predictions as western Queensland mining towns’ prices are still below their peaks; such is the case of Blackwater.

The REIQ Queensland Market Monitor report identified suburbs in QLD that have reached double-digit annual price growth over the 12 months to June 2018. The analysis only included suburbs having an annual sales above 20 for the past year and excluded houses that are located on blocks with more than 2,400 square metres in area.

Free WiFi at All CityCat Terminals By End of 2018

Residents and visitors will soon be enjoying free WiFi service at all CityCat and ferry terminals. The Council will be rolling out the service at all terminal locations from UQ-St Lucia to Northshore Hamilton by the end of 2018.

So far, free WiFi service has already been installed in five terminals: West End, Guyatt, Bretts Wharfs, and the two South Bank terminals. Twenty more terminals will be fitted with the free service by the end of this year. The entire CityCat fleet also has built-in WiFi service currently allowing access to UQConnect and EduRoam, TransLink timetable information, and the Brisbane City Council’s website.

Once all 25 ferry terminals are fitted with the wireless service, locals and visitors alike will be able to connect the free WiFi hotspot whilst waiting for the ferry service.

“This will add to our extensive network of more than 275 FREE WiFi hotspots in Council libraries, City & Valley malls, parks and several suburban shopping precincts,” Deputy Mayor Adrian Schrinner said on his Facebook Page post.

*Photo Credit: Brisbane City Council/brisbane.qld.gov.au*

Free WiFi service is also available in parks, Brisbane City Council libraries, and many public places and landmarks across Brisbane such as Brisbane Botanic Gardens, and South Bank and Roma Street Parklands.

Some of the WiFi-covered streets:

Roma Street
Queen Street
Stones Corner
Caxton Street
James Street and Newstead

Some of the WiFi-covered parks:

Kalinga Park
Forest Lake Parklands
Kalinga Park
Carindale Recreation Reserve
Kangaroo Point Cliffs Park

About CityCat, SpeedyCat, and ferry services

CityCats are one of the most convenient and fastest means to get around the riverside areas of the Brisbane CBD, especially during peak hours. The Brisbane City council currently operates a fleet of 21 CityCats and nine monohull ferries. A total of 25 terminal locations stretches from University of Queensland St Lucia to Northshore Hamilton.

In 2018, the Council introduced SpeedyCats—which significantly cuts passenger travel time—providing more than 100 peak-hour services along the Brisbane every week. SpeedyCats ferry services stop at UQ St Lucia, West End, Guyatt Park, North Quay, Riverside, Teneriffe, Apollo Road, and Northshore Hamilton.

CityHopper, on the other hand, is a free inner-city ferry service which allows passengers to hop on and hop off every 30 minutes. Ferry stops are located at North Quay, South Bank 3, Maritime Museum, Thornton Street, Eagle Street Pier, Holman Street, Dockside, and Sydney Street.

Hamilton Northshore and St Lucia to Get Ferry Connection to Future Howard Smith Wharves Terminal

A ferry terminal will be built at Howard Smith Wharves, linking the Hamilton Northshore and UQ St Lucia terminals to the much-anticipated riverfront destination.

Brisbane City Council made the announcement as Howard Smith Wharves closes in on the opening date. The ferry terminal will be jointly funded by Howard Smith Wharves and the council. Howard Smith Wharves will contribute $3 million to the $12-million project.

Proposed site of the Howard Smith Wharves ferry terminal. (Photo credit: Brisbane City Council)

Deputy Mayor Adrian Schrinner believes that building a terminal at Howard Smith Wharves makes perfect sense. After a $110-million revitalisation effort, Howard Smith Wharves is poised to become a world-class lifestyle and public entertainment riverfront precinct.

“With its river’s edge location, public parkland, hotel, dining and bars, Howard Smith Wharves is the ideal location for the city’s next ferry terminal,” the deputy mayor said.

“With regular events planned at Howard Smith Wharves’ exhibition centre, as well as the restaurants, bars and public parkland expected to attract large crowds, the terminal will provide convenient public transport to the site.”

The addition of the terminal is the first expansion to the river ferry network since 2015.

Howard Smith Wharves Consortium Chief Executive Officer Luke Fraser is happy about the proposed terminal.

“With our unique position beneath the Story Bridge, there will be no better way to get to Howard Smith Wharves than on the river, which is at the heart of the city’s transformation into a New World City,” Mr Fraser said.

The Howard Smith Wharves terminal is scheduled to open in 2020.

Get updates on Howard Smith Wharves.

Brisbane Airport Continues to Expand as a Transport and Commercial Hub

Latest research findings show overwhelming satisfaction of Brisbane Airport Corporation tenants and employees ahead of the completion of its several key projects.

The survey was aimed at current businesses and BNE workers and it provided insights from its over 425 businesses and 1,000 (out of more than 23,000) airport workers. The results showed that four out of five established businesses at the Brisbane Airport indicate that performance is either “very good” or “excellent”. Ninety percent of current airport workers enjoy working at Brisbane Airport.

BNE Property, Brisbane Airport’s property division, attributes this satisfaction to their vision of developing a partnership with BAC and its growing tenant base at the airport.
BNE Property is currently responsible for the development and management of property portfolio valued at over $1.265 billion, employing 90 percent of its workers from South-East Queensland and sourcing 90 per cent of construction equipment from local areas.

BNE Airport – An Ideal Business Destination
Video credit: Brisbane Airport/YouTube

The latest addition to their portfolio is the $300 million BNE Auto Mall which is touted to be the only automotive precinct in Australia offering 24/7 operation with no noise restrictions. Construction works had begun for this project which is going to be located next to the International Terminal. Delivered in three stages, stage 1 of BNE Auto Mall development is expected to be completed in 2021.

The BNE Auto Mall will feature a track with high-speed straights, skid pan, handling, and off-road circuits. The track will be available to use for manufacturer launch events, media driving events, driver training, and vehicle engineering, among other purposes.

Each of these projects coincides with the development of Brisbane Airport’s new runway. The survey said that 70 percent of businesses in the precinct believe the new runway will have a positive impact on their business.

Max Brenner in Portside Wharf Hamilton Closes

After struggling financially, Max Brenner in Portside Wharf Hamilton is now permanently closed along with 19 other stores across Australia.

Due to escalating costs and tighter retail trade, the directors of Max Brenner Australia have resolved to appoint Voluntary Administrators on 30 September 2018. The Voluntary Administrators appointed to the store are Barry Kogan, Kathy Sozou, and Jason Preston.

Despite saying that Max Brenner stores will still operate on a ‘business as usual’ basis in their previous statement, the beloved chocolatier closed 20 of its stores on Monday, 8 October 2018.

The administrators said that they were left with no choice but to close more than half of Max Brenner Australia’s stores. This came on the heels of their store-by-store review of its operations.

Furthermore, staff from the closed locations will be made redundant whilst administrators try to sell or recapitalise the business and keep the remaining stores operating.

Closed Stores

Remaining Stores

1. Kingston ACT
2. UNSW (Kensington) NSW
3. Wollongong NSW
4. Central Park (Chippendale) NSW
5. Newtown NSW
6. Parramatta NSW
7. Casuarina Darwin NT
8. Gasworks (Newstead) QLD
9. Portside (Hamilton) QLD
10. Milton QLD
11. Townsville QLD
12. Toowoomba QLD
13. Australia Fair (Southport) QLD
14. Rockhampton QLD
15. Coolangatta QLD
16. Carindale QLD
17. Rundle Street (Adelaide) SA
18. Woodgrove (Melton West) VIC
19. Joondalup WA
20. Whitford City (Hillarys) WA

1. Belconnen ACT
2. Macquarie Centre (Macquarie Park) NSW
3. Narellan NSW
4. Doody Street (Alexandria) NSW
5. Charlestown NSW
6. Blacktown NSW
7. Manly NSW
8. Sydney Tower (Sydney CBD) NSW
9. Tuggerah NSW
10. Bondi Junction NSW
11. Surfers Paradise QLD
12. Robina QLD
13. Southbank (South Brisbane) QLD
14. Queen Victoria (Melbourne) VIC
15. Highpoint (Maribyrnong) VIC
16. Craigieburn VIC
17. Doncaster VIC

Redundancy

Photo credit: Max Brenner Australia/Facebook

According to the Fair Work Ombudsman, “When an employee’s job is made redundant their employer has to give them redundancy pay, also known as severance pay.”

The amount of redundancy pay the employee gets is based on his or her continuous service with the employer. Continuous service is determined with the length of time they are employed by the business and doesn’t include unpaid leave.

The staff that were made redundant may calculate redundancy pay with Fair Work’s Notice and Redundancy Calculator.

Employees Still Owed Unpaid Wages

Apart from the expected redundancy pay, some of Max Brenner’s employees claim that they are still owed unpaid wages.

In a letter to the employees, the administrators said they are currently checking the calculation of outstanding entitlements. Those who are owed money by the company are considered as creditors.

Creditors may claim their entitlements which may involve any unpaid wages, the accrued leave amounts (annual leave, long service leave), redundancy pay (if applicable), and unpaid superannuation.

Access to these entitlements depends on the outcome of the administration which will be decided at the second meeting of creditors. The first meeting of creditors was held on Thursday, 11 October 2018.

Enjoy A Frenchy Affair at Hamilton Reach

Hamilton Reach is having a distinctly French celebration on Sunday, 21 October 2018.

It’s a good day to be outdoors when Hamilton Reach hosts A Frenchy Affair at the Northshore Riverside Park. Guests will certainly enjoy a taste of France with local cuisine, tunes, and entertainment at the event.

From 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m., families can have a lovely picnic at the park whilst being entertained by acclaimed jazz band Cigany Weaver.

Photo credit: J’adore Les Crepes/Facebook

Visitors will also enjoy free coffee, crepes by J’adore Les Crepes and other Frenchy fare, French-inspired cocktails and drinks at Northshore Harbour Café, and gourmet cheeses from Le Fromage Yard.

There are also several free activities to keep the kids and the kids-at-heart entertained such as a caricaturist, crafts for kids, giant games, and more.

Treats for Early Birds

More free goodies await early birds! The first 100 people to visit the newly completed Riverlight apartments before the event starts can fill their goodie bags with free treats.

Early goers can start collecting free goodies from 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. from the pastry station, macaron station, lolly buffet, lemonade and iced tea bar, and French champagne in the penthouse for 18+ only. Picnic rugs and more freebies will be up for grabs on the day. Remember, only one goodie bag is allowed per family.

Travelling to Hamilton Reach

Because of on-street parking limitations along Macarthur Avenue, guests travelling by car may park at the free car park. It is located on the right before the Hamilton Reach roundabout.

Visitors may also travel by CityCat. The Northshore Riverside CityCat stop is just a two-minute walk from the Sales and Display Centre.