Brisbane hospital to be transformed into ‘wellness campus’

St Vincent’s Health Australia is planning to redevelop its Kangaroo Point hospital site in Brisbane, submitting a development application that outlines a series of health and residential developments over the next 20 years.

Architecture firm Bickerton Masters has developed a design strategy for an “interconnected wellness campus” at the site of St Vincent’s Private Hospital, which would include aged care accommodation, residential and commercial uses, as well as research facilities and public green spaces.

The private hospital, previously known as Mt Olivet Hospital, was built on the Kangaroo Point site in the mid 1950s to service elderly patients. St Vincent’s said the site was “underdeveloped” and that, within the Brisbane context, there was “a need to provide a service which delivers a care continuum on site, enabling people with a range of complex health needs to age in place with dignity.”

The redevelopment would represent a move away from an institutional residential care and healthcare model to an outwardly focused, community-based strategy.

Bickerton Masters’ initial concept plans describe an architecture that encourages interaction and connection.

“The concept derives from fluid forms that echo the form of rocks sculpted by the constant flow of water,” reads a design statement. “In this sense, the built forms could be considered an analogy for the rocks in a river that stand as sentinels between the flow of the Brisbane River and the constant flow of traffic on Main Street.

“…at the ground plane, the building forms create pedestrian focussed connected open spaces that open vistas to the city, connecting from Main Street through to the river edge below and beyond to the CBD. Built forms that frame this open space include uses that will create activity and stimulate interaction.”

The development could include buildings ranging from 15 to 19 storeys, to be delivered over six stages.

The development application can be viewed here.