$700 million-plus in expected gross revenue. One developer-builder. One of GRAYA’s biggest projects yet.
Brisbane developer and builder GRAYA has lodged a development application for The Silo Newstead, a proposed residential-led mixed-use tower on a major site at the corner of Chester and Morse streets.
The proposal contains 170 residences, ground-floor retail and dining, a new pedestrian laneway known as Silo Lane and more than 2,000sqm of resident amenity across a two-level skydeck.
The project is not construction-ready yet, but its scale and GRAYA’s combined developer-builder role make it a significant future private construction project for Queensland contractors to monitor.
The $700 million-plus figure refers to estimated gross revenue from the proposed development.
Current project reporting identifies more than $700 million as estimated gross revenue from the proposed development.
It should not automatically be interpreted as construction cost, capital expenditure or the value of a head construction contract.
The Silo Newstead would add another major tower to Brisbane’s private construction pipeline
Newstead has undergone one of Brisbane’s most significant transformations from former industrial land into a high-density residential, commercial and lifestyle precinct.
The Silo Newstead would continue that transition on one of the larger remaining sites near James Street.
GRAYA acquired the approximately 3,016sqm property for $40 million after an off-market sales process and moved quickly to lodge a new proposal for the site.
The location sits close to James Street, The Calile Hotel and Gasworks, giving the project both a residential and public-realm component.
The development replaces an earlier Frasers Property proposal for the same site with a substantially different GRAYA design.
Approval would unlock a major vertical construction program
A tower of this scale can create a long sequence of works from demolition and basement excavation through concrete structure, façade installation, building services and luxury residential fit-out.
None of those construction packages should be treated as live procurement until GRAYA progresses the project beyond the current planning stage.
170 residences, Silo Lane and a 2,000sqm-plus skydeck
The proposal is designed as more than a conventional apartment tower.
Bureau Proberts has developed a series of cylindrical tower forms intended to reference the area’s industrial history while creating a distinct high-rise profile.
At ground level, Silo Lane is proposed as a landscaped pedestrian route incorporating restaurants, cafés and retail.
At the upper levels, the project proposes an extensive two-level skydeck including pools, health and wellness areas and communal spaces.
Current reporting describes the proposed tower as reaching up to approximately 35 storeys, subject to the final development application assessment and design process.
High-rise delivery concentrates multiple trade packages on one constrained site
Inner-city tower construction typically requires detailed sequencing of structure, façade, services, crane operations, deliveries and fit-out.
The constrained Newstead location would make logistics, traffic management, lifting strategy and material movement important parts of any eventual delivery program.
GRAYA operates across both development and construction, so the project does not currently depend on appointment of an unrelated head builder before delivery planning can progress.
If the proposal advances through approval and commercial delivery, the key industry milestone may therefore shift directly toward construction planning and subcontractor procurement rather than a separate head-contractor tender.
GRAYA describes its broader model around design, development and construction, giving the company a higher level of control across project conception and delivery.
That structure is particularly relevant to suppliers and specialist trades because eventual procurement decisions could sit directly within the same organisation developing the project.
The project still has several steps to clear before construction
The Silo remains at development-application stage; demolition and tower construction have not commenced.
The development application is the beginning of the planning pathway for GRAYA’s proposal.
Future construction exposure could span dozens of specialist trades
If The Silo Newstead progresses through planning into construction, a high-rise mixed-use development of this type could create a broad subcontractor and supplier pipeline.
Relevant future capability areas include the following.
A major private build could run through multiple construction cycles
High-rise developments move progressively from excavation and structure into envelope, building services, apartment fit-out, landscaping and commissioning.
That creates different entry points for subcontractors over the life of a project rather than a single procurement moment.
Silo Lane adds a public-realm and hospitality component
One element that broadens the project beyond residential construction is the proposed Silo Lane.
GRAYA’s plans include a landscaped retail and dining laneway at ground level intended to improve pedestrian movement through the Newstead block.
That brings another set of construction interfaces around retail shells, hospitality fit-out, external finishes, public art, landscaping, lighting, paving and pedestrian infrastructure.
For contractors, mixed-use ground planes can often involve a different group of specialist trades from the residential levels above.
The Silo joins a growing Brisbane high-rise development pipeline
GRAYA’s proposal also sits within a larger private construction pipeline across Brisbane.
Another major Brisbane proposal is the approximately $1 billion Toowong Central redesign , where four mixed-use towers remain under assessment.
Like The Silo, Toowong Central demonstrates the potential scale of Brisbane’s future private high-rise market while also showing why planning-stage developments must be distinguished from awarded or construction-ready projects.
Contractors can follow wider activity through BBI Project Watch and the Brisbane & South East Queensland industry directory .
GRAYA’s developer-builder model could move the project directly from approval into delivery planning
The Silo remains at development-application stage, so construction procurement has not yet reached the immediacy of an awarded or active project.
The proposal combines substantial scale with a delivery structure in which GRAYA is both developer and builder.
If the project progresses through planning and commercial approvals, this structure could allow construction planning and subcontractor procurement to advance without a separate Tier 1 head-builder appointment.
Future delivery could extend across excavation, foundations, concrete, façade, electrical, mechanical, hydraulics, vertical transport, luxury fit-out, landscaping and major inner-city logistics.
The next major milestones are Brisbane City Council assessment, development approval, detailed design, construction-program confirmation and commencement of trade procurement.
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Sources
- GRAYA — Developer and builder project information
- Brisbane Development — GRAYA Lodges The Silo, a 170 Residence Tower for James St Precinct, 6 August 2026
- The Urban Developer — GRAYA Reveals Newstead Highrise Project After $40M Site Deal, 6 August 2026
- Brisbane City Council — Development.i planning application portal