Probuild in line for Baldivis contract

Stockland has selected Probuild as its preferred contractor for the $116 million redevelopment and expansion of its Baldivis shopping centre.

Construction is set to begin next month, subject to the two companies executing a design and construction contract.

The new contract adds to work Probuild is currently doing as the main contractor on office projects at 32 St Georges Terrace (the former May Holman Centre) and 863 Hay Street (Cloisters on Hay).

It is also working on the '140' retail development in the city.

Projects it has recently completed include the QEII Medical Centre car park, University of WA student accomodation, and Origin apartments at Burswood. 

The shopping centre expansion, announced in December, will expand the gross lettable area from 7,000 square metres to about 29,500sqm.

This will make Stockland Baldivis the state's 19th biggest shopping centre, according to Business News' Book of Lists, up from 86th spot previously. 

The redevelopment will add a Woolworths supermarket, a Kmart store and 75 new specialty retailers, while expanding the existing Coles supermarket.

The first stage of the expansion is set to be completed by the end of next year with the second stage targeted for completion in mid-2015.

"This $116 million project will create a virtually new shopping centre that is approximately four times the size of the current shopping centre," Stockland development manager Prue Cunningham said.

"Since so much of this project involves expansion, rather than redevelopment, it will be relatively straightforward to ensure that our existing centre is able to continue to trade, uninterrupted, for the 18-month duration of the project.”

More than 400 new retail jobs are expected to be created at the shopping centre by the time the redevelopment is completed in mid-2015.