The red-shaded area will be converted to 49 units for Quest Apartments.
QUEST Apartments’ second multi million-dollar project for Albury starts on Monday when Southern Cross Developers move into the former woolstore on Townsend and Smollett streets.
The $8.25 million job for John Colquhoun’s The Old Woolstore (Albury) Pty Ltd will create 49 serviced apartments.
Most of them will be in a first-floor section formerly housing Centrelink.
A few apartments will be in sections that the Australian Taxation Office recently vacated, but the main two-storey section in Smollett Street opposite Centro isn’t part of the development.
Southern Cross, based in South Albury, won the contract from Hansen Yuncken, Zauner Construction, Wodonga-based QI Construction and Ballarat’s H Troon.
The company, headed by John Tyrrell, only recently completed the Hilltop carer accommodation centre for the Fight Cancer Foundation, next to the Albury base hospital.
Its projects include upgrades of Catholic College Wodonga and the Junction Place redevelopment at the old Wod-onga railway station.
Mr Tyrrell said Southern Cross was delighted to secure the contract and he expected that there would be 80 to 90 sub-contractors working on it at times.
“We have to finish it by November,” he said.
Under the plans approved by the Albury Council, the ground floor on the Townsend-Smollett streets corner will have a separate commercial tenant.
Each apartment will have two or three bedrooms with living areas, kitchens and bathrooms.
The heritage-listed facade must remain unaltered, apart from an entry for cars and the fitting of double-glazed windows and balconies.
Exterior wall features, such as the sheep heads and “wool store” signage will stay.
Quest Apartments in Kiewa Street has operated with 104 apartments since it opened four years ago.
It was built by Hansen Yuncken on the former Fallon wine cellars site.
Meanwhile, Joss Construction is building 80 apartments for Quest in Reid Street, Wodonga in association with a hotel, “the Huon Hill pub”.