Calile Malouf Investments has submitted an application to redevelop 46 James Street – recognised as the Centro building and currently housing the tom gunn and sass & bide boutiques. The development will house a 142-room hotel designed by local architecture firm Richards & Spence, along with increased retail opportunities. The project will wrap the length of the block from the Centro building corner of James Street, back along Doggett Street reaching Wandoo Street. The original Centro on James urban renewal project was completed in 2000 and took into account the Palace Centro Cinemas side of the street, as well as the commercial and retail aspects running towards James St Market and back to Wandoo.

Richards & Spence was behind the added tom gunn store extension of the current Centro on James block in 2010, and the firm’s work can also be seen in the framework of the 19 James Street hub. Recognised for impressive and elegant brickwork, Richards & Spence will frame the street-level retail with double-storey brick arches, while the seven-storey hotel will take advantage of Brisbane’s sub-tropical climate with a an outdoor pool, garden and roof terrace.