Sale of Hanover House signals likely end for Beulah’s STH BNK vision

The sale of Hanover House in Southbank appears to have all but extinguished hopes of Beulah delivering its iconic STH BNK by Beulah project in its originally approved form.

As first reported by the Australian Financial Review, receivers have sold the 158 City Rd site – known as Hanover House – for around $26 million to a private local developer, who is understood to be pursuing a build-to-rent project using the site’s existing planning permit for a 46-storey residential tower.

The sale is significant because Hanover House formed around a third of the land assembly required for Beulah’s internationally acclaimed “Green Spine” proposal.

The approved $2.7 billion development was designed to span both the former BMW showroom site at 118 City Rd and the neighbouring Hanover House property, with the project only becoming possible after the planning permit was amended in 2023 to incorporate both sites into a single development footprint.

While the former BMW site remains unsold and continues to be marketed by receivers, the separate sale of Hanover House effectively ends any realistic prospect of the twin-tower Green Spine scheme proceeding as originally approved.

The latest development represents a significant shift from Beulah’s public position over the past two years.

As previously reported by Southbank News, the developer had consistently maintained it remained committed to realising its goal despite mounting financial pressures, telling this newspaper in 2024 that it was “committed to delivering our vision” while pursuing design amendments aimed at reducing construction costs.

More recently, after the project’s management entity entered voluntary administration, Beulah said it continued to be in discussions with potential development partners regarding the next phase of the project.

However, in comments published following the Hanover House sale, the developer acknowledged that the project “may not proceed as originally envisaged”, citing challenging market conditions despite its “best efforts”.

The sale also comes as pressure continues to mount over an estimated $57 million in purchaser deposits tied to the stalled development.

Southbank News first revealed concerns from purchasers earlier this year after buyers questioned how long their deposits could stay locked away while construction remained stalled.

Since that reporting, Southbank News understands a number of purchasers have now engaged legal representation in an effort to recover their deposits from Beulah, arguing the circumstances surrounding the project have fundamentally changed.

The latest sale is expected to strengthen those arguments, with some purchasers reportedly claiming the separate disposal of Hanover House constitutes a material change to the development they originally agreed to purchase into.

According to the AFR, receivers are now seeking legal advice on whether the sale affects the status of purchaser contracts and associated deposits, while marketing efforts continue for the adjoining former BMW showroom site.

For Southbank, the sale marks the likely end of one of the city’s most ambitious – and heavily promoted – development proposals.

Unveiled in 2018 following an international architectural competition, STH BNK by Beulah promised Australia’s tallest building, a Four Seasons hotel, Centre Pompidou partnership, extensive public open space and a dramatic “Green Spine” design that quickly became synonymous with the future of Southbank.

After years of anticipation, extensive marketing campaigns and repeated assurances that the vision was still alive, the sale of one of the project’s two cornerstone sites suggests that chapter has now come to a close. •