Wotif Co-Founder’s New Venture in ‘Permanent’ Accommodation

Co-founder of the Brisbane start-up Wotif that became an online travel booking giant, Andrew Brice, is venturing into providing accommodation of a more permanent kind.

The entrepreneur and philanthropist is behind plans for a townhouse development in his hometown’s inner-city suburb of Paddington.

Dubbed the Paddington Printery, the proposal comprises 12 three to four-bedroom double-storey townhouses with communal courtyards.

It is earmarked for a 2165sq m site at 31 Stevenson Street occupied by a complex of office-warehouse buildings, which have been home to a printing company, acting academy and other businesses.

Property records showed that Highline Properties—an entity linked to Brice—acquired the infill site in December 2018 for $3.35 million.

Planning documents supporting the development application said the existing industrial buildings were in “a state of disrepair” and all but one would be demolished to make way for the residential development.

A pre-1947 building—protected under a traditional building character overlay—would be preserved, revitalised and adaptively reused to accommodate two of the townhouses.

“The proposed development presents an exciting opportunity to revitalise the site which is characterised by large bulky run-down industrial buildings with blank facades and limited setbacks … and transform it into a character development in keeping with the nature of the surrounding area,” a planning assessment report said.

It deemed the proposal would not only provide “an exemplar residential design that is well articulated in the streetscape” but also “additional housing choice and variety within an inner-city suburb of Brisbane”.

“This housing will aid in addressing the growing demand for housing choice which Brisbane currently faces,” the report said.

Designed by Myers Ellyett Architects, the townhouse scheme—fronting Stevenson and Herbert streets—also would feature extensive landscaping and walkways with communal open spaces making up 24.2 per cent of the site.

Garden seating, a barbecue and dining area, lounge beds and a large swimming pool are to be integrated into the recreational space.

“The development has been designed to take advantage of Brisbane’s subtropical climate through balconies, private open space and generous communal courtyard spaces,” the application said.

It noted that following a pre-lodgement meeting with the Brisbane City Council, the proposal had been refined to incorporate lightweight materials, pitched roofs and balconies addressing Stevenson Street to “reduce the appearance of building bulk and align with the traditional built forms of low-medium dwellings found within this local character area”.

“It also presents a building form and roof height which contributes positively to the rhythm of Stevenson Street.”

Brice was working as an accountant in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley in 1999 when IT entrepreneur Graeme Wood walked into his office with an idea for a website where accommodation providers could list unused rooms at discount prices.

Together, they established Wotif and pocketed a fortune after a $703-million takeover in 2014 by US-listed global travel juggernaut Expedia.