GRAYA has revealed the approved design for IVORY, a private riverfront home at 17 Julius Street, New Farm, with construction now under way. Set on the river between New Farm Park and the Story Bridge, the five level residence stacks white, curved terraces above a riverfront garden, held up by sculpted columns, with its main living spaces looking across the water to the city skyline.
The 688 square metre site sold for $25 million in October 2025. GRAYA has spent the past 11 months designing the home for its owners, and the company’s in-house team is leading both the design and the build. GRAYA expects IVORY to become the first home in Brisbane valued at more than $50 million once complete. Brisbane City Council approved the design on 9 September 2026.
The planning report, prepared by Urban Strategies, describes the house as a sculptural, landscape-led form. Rather than presenting a flat wall to the river, the curved terraces are meant to give the building a softer, changing profile when seen from the water, from neighbouring homes and from the riverwalk, in contrast with the larger apartment buildings along this reach. Tree planting and climbing vegetation along the river edge, designed by Urbis, are intended to tie the home into the riverbank.
The approved plans spread the home across a below-ground level, a ground level, two upper levels and a roof terrace, rising about 14.8 metres above natural ground on a site that falls steeply from Julius Street to the river. Drawings show a lift connecting the floors, a swimming pool on the river side, a gym and a cellar, a garage beneath the house and a roof terrace with its own bar.
A visual impact assessment by Larchus describes the design in three parts. The two lowest levels, largely cut into the slope, take a darker, recessive finish, with deep planting including native canopy trees and the glazing pulled back more than nine metres from the river. The two main levels above switch to the lighter, curving form seen in the renders and step further back from the water, and the roof terrace is set back again at the top. The aim, the report says, is for the base of the house to read as landscape from the river, in keeping with the planted lower levels of its neighbours along this stretch.
Inside, the renders show open living spaces wrapped in curved glass beneath deep overhangs, with the sculpted columns carried through from the garden. At the water’s edge, a private pontoon gives the owners direct access to the river, a rare feature for a home this close to the city.
IVORY adds to GRAYA’s growing body of work in New Farm, including Chalk and 81 Barker Street. Its in-house model, with design, development and construction under one roof, has become a calling card for the business led by Rob and Andrew Gray.
Julius Street sits in one of New Farm’s most established riverfront pockets, a short walk from New Farm Park, the Brisbane Powerhouse and the CityCat, and within easy reach of the James Street precinct and the CBD.
Project Rundown
| Development Parameter | Proposed Development |
|---|---|
| Address | 17 Julius Street, New Farm QLD 4005 |
| Application Number | A007044166 |
| Project | IVORY, a private riverfront residence |
| Development Type | Development permit for building work for a dwelling house, with a referral to the State as the site adjoins a heritage-listed place |
| Approval | Approved by Brisbane City Council on 9 September 2026 |
| Status | Under construction |
| Site Area | 688 m² |
| Zone | Medium density residential zone; New Farm and Teneriffe Hill neighbourhood plan |
| Height | Five levels including a below-ground level and roof terrace; about 14.8 m above natural ground |
| Key Features | Lift, swimming pool, gym, cellar, roof terrace with bar, garage and a private pontoon on the river |
| Site Sale | $25 million, October 2025 |
| Expected Value | Above $50 million on completion (GRAYA estimate) |
| Sustainability | Living Greenery: Tree planting and climbing plants along the river edge and through the terraces, with landscape design by Urbis. Envelope: Curved terraces and deep overhangs shade the glazed living spaces facing west over the river. |
| Design and Construction | GRAYA |
| Town Planner | Urban Strategies |
| Heritage | Pendergast Architects |
| Landscape Architect | Urbis |
| Visual Impact | Larchus |
| Neighbouring Heritage | Julius Street Flats (State heritage-listed interwar apartment group, 1934 to 1938), including Evelyn Court |
GRAYA is a Brisbane design, development and construction company led by Rob and Andrew Gray. It works across luxury homes, boutique apartment buildings and mixed-use projects, keeping design and construction in-house, with recent work across New Farm, Newstead, Hamilton, St Lucia and the Gold Coast.
Architectural renders by GRAYA; design and build by GRAYA. Artist impressions only and subject to change.
