Arise Reveals $170m LFR for WA’s Growing South-West

Arise Developments is plotting the biggest large format retail development outside Perth.

Arise wants to establish a HomeHQ centre for large-scale bulky goods at Busselton, 220km by road from the WA capital, with a GFA of 48,235 square metres.

The precinct, planned for Lot 11 and part of Lot 803 at Chapman Hill Road, would include eight buildings from 2510sq m to 14,692sq m as well as 1230 car parking bays. 

Arise plans to cultivate a wetland around the site including a nature walk, pedestrian-friendly integration and on-site amenities including playgrounds.

Historically used for rural purposes, the site currently consists of vacant farmland and degraded vegetation. If Arise’s project is approved after the consultation period, it plans to attract home and sporting good outlets as well as furniture retailers to the centre. 

The 3.5ha site is on the corner of the Busselton Bypass and Chapman Hill Road at Bovell, on the outskirts of the Busselton CBD. It is an area identified for urban growth and development “reflective of the growing population in the South-West”.

▲ A render of the planned centre that has been valued at $170 million.

The land was rezoned in 2012 to “recognise the commercial opportunities the land presented”—these uses were further broadened in 2019. 

Since the end of 2023, according to the development application by Urbis, Arise Developments has been progressing its proposal to develop the site. The plans are now on public exhibition as a Significant Development. 

The LFR sector is growing in Australia thanks largely to the emergence of the lifestyle retail category, moving on from traditional furniture and hardware categories, according to CBRE.

There are around 332 LFR centres in Australia with approximately 5.3 million sq m of floorspace, however, CBRE said, there are high barriers to entry. 

It is a capital-intensive endeavour, particularly when buying land in prime locations. Australia has just 0.9 sq m of total LFR retail per capita, compared to 2.1sq m in the US and 1.5sq m in Canada.