Office Plans Move Ahead in ACT Parliament Precinct

An ACT-based development syndicate is about to begin construction of a 2022-approved project in possibly the tightest office market in the country. 

Chase Group and Kenyon Investments are moving ahead with a six-storey office building, with floorplates averaging 2800sq m, at 40 Brisbane Avenue, Bartonm, in Canberra’s Parliament Precinct.

The scheme will add 16,562sq m of net leasable area to the city along with end-of-trip facilities, wellness and conference spaces.

Colliers national director of office leasing Aaron Bruce said A-grade office vacancy at Barton was the lowest in the country at just 0.9 per cent.

He said the site held “proximity to critical blue ribbon Commonwealth departments”.

“[It] is directly adjacent to the new National Security Office Precinct—placing those based there within one of the most influential and secure precincts in the country.”

The building will be powered by renewable electricity and is targeting a 5.5 Star NABERS Energy rating as well as a 5 Star Green Buildings rating.

The plans for this office were lodged in 2021 and gained approval the following year. 

While Barton remains tight, large levels of new supply are outweighing positive demand in the broader Canberra region with vacancies increasing from 9.2 per cent to 10.7 per cent, according to the Property Council of Australia’s biannual 2025 Office Market Report released in July.

▲ The new office will be almost across the road from Parliament House.

That was equal with Brisbane as the best performing city in the nation. 

Canberra is expected to gain 16,000sq m in the next six months. That is down on the national capital’s historical average but remains a better result than Melbourne’s.

Connectivity in Canberra is expected to improve dramatically as Canberra’s light rail network expands.

The planning documents for Stage 2B were released in July and show two potential circuits through the Parliament Precinct and on to the new Canberra Institute of Technology Woden campus.