Brisbane City Council has confirmed that the first stage of the Queen Street Mall expansion is set to open before the end of the year, with new outdoor dining areas planned between Elizabeth and Charlotte Streets as part of the wider Albert Street renewal linked to Cross River Rail.
The council says the mall will eventually extend along Albert Street between Elizabeth and Mary Streets, creating a larger pedestrian precinct that forms a new public plaza above the future Albert Street station.
The announcement arrives during a period of significant transition for the mall. While the council highlights high pedestrian movement and positions the upgrade as a continuation of Brisbane’s lifestyle precinct success, the broader retail conditions in the city centre remain far more complex. Several major anchor tenants have departed in recent years, including the recent closure of H&M’s former multi-level flagship on Queen Street Mall, which had served as one of the precinct’s most recognisable international retailers.
The Wintergarden complex has been largely inactive as ISPT dragging their feet on plans for a wider redevelopment, and the former Myer Centre, now rebranded as Uptown, continues to navigate a repositioning phase following Myer’s withdrawal from the CBD in 2023.
Myer has publicly signalled interest in returning to the Brisbane CBD in a smaller format, describing a potential comeback as a right-sized approach, although no tenancy commitment has been confirmed.
Operators in the precinct have noted that many pedestrian movements are pass-through rather than destination-based visits, contributing to shorter dwell times and softer retail activity.
According to the council, the staged Albert Street works will continue into 2025, with additional activation, dining and retail spaces set to open in phases between Elizabeth, Charlotte and Mary Streets.
The expansion will integrate Albert Street traders into the Queen Street Mall Central Area Plan in the 2026 to 2027 financial year and aims to create a seamless pedestrian link from Roma Street Parkland to the City Botanic Gardens once the new station plaza is complete.
Construction of the station’s 153-tonne canopy is underway, with major public-realm upgrades forming a prominent part of the Cross River Rail precinct transformation.
The council has also pointed to a pipeline of private projects expected to influence the mall’s future performance, including Griffith University’s new CBD campus in the former Treasury Building, the conversion of the Hilton Brisbane into an InterContinental-branded hotel, ISPT’s redevelopment plans for the Wintergarden site, Charter Hall’s proposal for the former St George Bank corner site, and broader revitalisation works at Uptown.
Brisbane is also preparing for a series of major events over the next 18 months, including the PGA Championships, the Ashes Test, the Brisbane International and the arrival of the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, alongside a string of large-scale concerts.
While the expansion marks a visible investment in the city’s pedestrian network, the mall’s long-term trajectory will depend on how effectively these redevelopment projects convert into new retail tenants, fresh hospitality offerings and sustained activation.
The precinct sits at a turning point, with state government-led upgrades signalling momentum, but on-the-ground retail performance continuing to reflect a more challenging and transitional period for Brisbane’s primary shopping street.
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The “no longer useful car parking exit” right in the middle of a pedestrian plaza is so very Brisbane. The car park has ample access from Elizabeth Street. The Albert Street exit should be filled in an made into part of pedestrian spine.