Chevron Renaissance

Chevron Renaissance
Chevron Renaissance
	(Apartment Complex & Shopping Centre)
	Chevron Renaissance Development
General information
Type	Residential, Commercial & Retail
Address	3240 Surfers Paradise Blvd Surfers Paradise, Gold Coast Queensland 4217
Coordinates	27°59′56.2812″S 153°25′42.9960″E
Completed	In stages from 2000 through to March 2005
Owner	713 individually owned residential lots
Design and construction
Developer	Raptis Group

Chevron Renaissance is a $400 million development on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia comprising 713[1] individually owned residential lots located above the Chevron Renaissance Shopping Centre. The onsite management of Chevron Renaissance residential lots is managed by Accor under the brand name of Mantra Towers of Chevron, previously The Towers of Chevron Renaissance.

Chevron Renaissance is on the site of the old Chevron Hotel in Surfers Paradise.[2][3][4][5]

The Chevron Renaissance commercial development occupies the block of land extending from the Gold Coast Highway in the east to Ferny Avenue in the west and from Circle on Cavill in the south halfway towards Cavill Avenue and Elkhorn Avenue in the north. Construction of the complex commenced in November 1999, was completed in December 2004 and opened in March 2005 by Queensland Premier Peter Beattie.[6][7]

History

Chevron Renaissance is the most significant Gold Coast development since the late 1950s. The first part of the Chevron was a "temporary" public bar that opened in June 1957. In August 1957 the upstairs Skyline Cabaret opened – a spacious indoor beer garden where liquor, meals and coffee were available with entertainment and dancing.[8][9]

In June 1958 the first accommodation wing opened at the new Chevron Hotel. This was followed in September by a second wing. In September 1960, work began on the construction of the Chevron Hotel’s Main Block, which included a 24–lane bowling alley underneath and a large, modern convention centre – the Corroboree Room. The Chevron was then as modern as any hotel in Australia and closer to international standards than any resort hotel in the nation.[8][9]

In 1987 most of the Chevron was demolished, leaving Surfers Paradise with a two-hectare hole in the middle of town for more than a decade due to the recession and lack of interest from property developers. In October 1999 Raptis Group unveiled plans for the $400 million Chevron Renaissance development and announced work would begin immediately.[8][10]

Development

The Chevron Renaissance development construction began with the driving of piles to a depth of approximately 45 m, plus an additional 10 m into the bedrock in places, to create the foundation for three towers.

The development was carried out at an average of 4.5 apartments a week over three years. The triple Towers of Chevron Renaissance used approximately 55,000 cum of concrete and more than 10,000 tonnes of steel reinforcement during the construction. It was a massive project including five acres of retail, commercial and dining space, three residential towers and two acres of garden podium and lagoon on the roof.