Once upon a time, in a land far, far away – sorry, no, in a training precinct 11km from the Brisbane CBD – a longstanding tenant gave notice of their departure. This is where our story begins.
In 2019, one of our biggest tenants left us, leaving behind a big, gaping hole in our precinct. We had inherited what our CEO liked to call an “opportunity” and what the rest of us liked to call “empty space, which is contributing nothing to our financial goals”. To be fair, that isn’t entirely true. It wasn’t just empty space. It was 4 training rooms, offices and an amenity area. But it was making us $0. It looked like this:
Yeah. So maybe it isn’t surprising that when we took it to market, we got zero takers. And then we looked like this:
After a bit of box breathing, our CEO was back with his “opportunity” spiel and a lot of different coloured whiteboard markers. This could only mean one thing: CTC colouring competition! Or alternatively: CTC brainstorming competition! Here we had this big, juicy chunk of space that was already equipped with an office, training rooms and kitchenette; we just needed to figure out what to do with it. In the words of ABBA, “take a chance on me Building 3”. Or maybe those were my words, I can’t remember.
Regardless, take a chance we did! The idea of Story Flexible Workspaces came to us pre-COVID, but in the post pandemic world, particularly the post-pandemic world of work, the appeal of flexible workspaces has tripled. Something about working in elastic waistbands and in the company of your dog for three months has caused both for employees and employers to realise that a permanent office space is not as crucial as we had all previously thought.
But as it stood, Story Flexible workspaces was clearly in desperate need of a facelift. Next step: mood board! Oops, no, my bad. Next step: board approval! And then a mood board. After some serious fieldwork visiting a number of locations around Brisbane that had a similar feel to what we were after, we set to work. One very impressive Gantt chart later, and Operation: Story had commenced. The refurbishments were extensive and involved the installation of: carpets, doors, locks, lighting, ceilings and a big chunk of extra soundproofing in the walls. The whole place was entirely repainted (internally and externally), TVs, magnetic blackboards and canvas prints were installed, new desks and chairs were added, three storage units were created, we repaired the railings and we added signage. Yes, it was basically the Ironman of renovations.
We officially started the refurbishments in January 2020, and officially finished them in June 2020. It was worth the wait though, because now we offer purpose-built facilities that look like this:
Talk about a glow up!
BEFORE
AFTER
We unofficially finished in about April, but COVID-19 slowed down the finishing touches…like the putt-putt lawn we decided was a last-minute necessary and critical component to the space (see above).
Located in the heart of our award-winning precinct, Story Flexible Workspaces is ready to roll! If you’re looking for a short or long-term hire option, we can cater to a range of different requirements. “Story” is located in the heart of our vibrant, award-winning precinct, with free car parking (important), unlimited wifi (even better) and a kitchenette (we’re not silly – morning tea is obviously number one priority).
If you’re interested or would like to know more, call us on 3216 6711 or email bookings@ctc.qld.edu.au.
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