Up, Not Down: McNab’s Tannery in Brisbane Excavates a West End Record

Hot on the heels of its record-breaking sale of a two-bedroom apartment at West End, builder-developer McNab has launched The Tannery. More than half of the project’s 87 apartments have already sold off-market, including the $2.57 million sale of a two-bedroom unit. The project is due for completion in September next year—McNab chief executive Kunjam Ganatra said buyers had certainty that the project would hit its ambitious two-year build program thanks to a tightly managed construction methodology comprising a no-basement strategy and an in-house trade workforce. Speaking to The Urban Developer , Ganatra acknowledged the market was somewhat muted, he said that now that the project has launched publicly , the focus would shift from investors to owner-occupiers. ▲ Speaking in front of the historic Thomas Dixon Tannery, McNab chief executive Kunjan Ganatra announced the record-breaking two-bedroom apartment sale. Image: RDW Photography Ganatra said the project’s build methodology was doing much of the work behind its two-year delivery timeline. The site’s natural slope enabled McNab to skip a full basement excavation in favour of two levels of podium parking, cutting months out of the program. “You’ve technically gained the equivalent of a basement just because of how the site sits,” Ganatra said. “We get two levels of podium car park, and then we go straight up. “A multi-residential project with a full basement, you can pretty much add a year—this one’s delivered in two.” Ganatra also pointed to the builder’s in-house building arm, about 150 workers across trades including structural steel, joinery and glazing, providing a buffer against the wet weather that has dogged Brisbane building sites this year. “It’s not for us to take over trades; we’re complementing our subcontractors to keep the program moving,” he said. “When a subcontractor workforce would normally have to leave the site in the rain, our team can wait it out, and when they get a 30-minute window, they’re on it.” Site access has also been reworked. McNab has leased an adjoining property at the rear of the site to open a second access point, which Ganatra estimated was worth about 10 per cent in productivity gains. The 11-storey development at 439 Montague Road converts a heritage tannery site into two, three and four-bedroom apartments anchored by a resident-only wellness precinct, The Retreat, built into the original industrial building. Architect Cottee Parker led the adaptive reuse alongside Aspect Studios and interior designer Tom Mark Henry. Principal Dee Passenger said the brief prioritised the site’s industrial character over maximising yield. “The easy option would have been to maximise the site’s development potential with additional apartments. Instead, McNab has chosen to preserve the original tannery as a shared wellness retreat,” Passenger said. Materials from the original site are being salvaged and repurposed through the build in partnership with Five Mile Radius—including one of the original concrete slabs, which is being reworked into a water feature. ▲ McNab founder Michael McNab, pictured with St George Bank regional general manager Stuart Hancock and relationship director Giuseppe Guardala, outside the historic tannery building, which is being preserved. Image: RDW Photography The Retreat, built into the original tannery building, will include a sauna and steam room, hot and cold plunge pools, an outdoor shower, a commercial-grade gym, a pilates and stretch studio, a private dining room, cinema, library and co-working spaces. Rooftop amenities included a pool, landscaped gardens, outdoor dining, a sunset lawn and dog-friendly zones. Alongside the public launch, McNab announced a partnership with Queensland Ballet—its home is in the former Thomas Dixon shoe factory across the road from The Tannery. The two sites share the same Dixon family origins. That partnership includes support for the company’s forthcoming production of The Nutcracker . McNab executive chairman Michael McNab said the early sales run reflected a shift in what apartment buyers were prepared to pay for. “Selling more than half the project before public sales open tells us buyers are actively seeking apartments that offer something genuinely different,” McNab said. He pointed to Brisbane’s population growth, constrained supply and the lead-up to the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games as tailwinds for the project’s positioning. The builder-developer is also working on its design and development application for another residential project on the corner of Cordelia and Peel Streets, feeding into a busy pipeline of projects on the South Brisbane and West End isthmus. “The market’s still ramping up to a really busy five years ahead. Probably by mid-next year, it’s gonna be quite a busy market … so we’ll be a bit ahead of the curve,” Ganatra said.

Apartments
Taryn Paris
Wed 15 Jul 26

Up, Not Down: McNab’s Tannery in Brisbane Excavates a West End Record

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ApartmentsTaryn ParisWed 15 Jul 26

Up, Not Down: McNab’s Tannery in Brisbane Excavates a West End Record

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Apartments
Taryn Paris
Wed 15 Jul 26