G20 has put the shortage of hotel rooms in Brisbane into sharp focus.
The world leaders conference is our shop window and the flow-on effects could be impressive.
The question is, who is willing to seize the opportunity?
If Brisbane wants to play with the big boys it needs to level the playing field.
At the moment it is behind the play when it comes to hotels, particularly high end accommodation.
First impressions count and people are not going to come if there is no room at the inn.
I estimate Brisbane needs six to eight new hotels within the next 10 years. And there needs to be a high end focus.
When Four Points at Sheraton, a 4.5 star establishment, opened on Mary Street this year it was the first internationally branded hotel to open in Brisbane in 16 years.
There are many reasons for this but let's look at the positive news first.
There is definitely a need for more hotels - the issue has even been discussed at federal level - and therefore there is a market.
Conditions are ideal. You won't hear any complaints from Tourism Queensland. And Brisbane City Council has relaxed its town planning rules to encourage more applications.
Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk has stated the city's lack of internationally recognised, full-service rooms means we are losing 121,000 visitors a year.
That loss of income has been estimated as equating to more than 1000 jobs and $114 million in lost economic opportunities.
It makes it harder to attract major events and investment in our city.
And the importance of investment in this area has not been lost on the State Government, which has stated it aims to double the annual overnight visitor expenditure from $15 billion to $30 billion by 2020.
So why is the issue? The problem is two-fold - there are nervous developers who consider multi-purpose developments or purpose-built residential to be a far safer deal. And there are others who bite the bullet but fail in their ventures because they are not au fait with the many and varied complexities of bringing such projects to fruition.
It is definitely a niche market and there is a lot of apprehension from developers because of a lack of knowledge. And without expert advice it can be a high risk venture.
Those risks are substantially reduced if you do engage the right people to advise you.
Most projects fall through due to a lack of funds or people plying it safe when they crunch some numbers and opt instead for mixed use.
People get anxious about the risk profile and site restrictions and small footprints. All of that can catch people by surprise.
People really need to go into this with a long-term vision and access to the expertise that will be vital to success.
The process from greenfield site to completion, with legal and contractual issues being handled in tandem, can take between three and four years.
But the returns can be great and the support has never been so strong.
Somehow we have to remove the fear factor.
If people assemble the right team they are well equipped to deal with all eventualities relating to identifying a site, acquisition, town planning, forecasting and modelling, construction and finding the right fit operator.
There are plenty of opportunities for people with a long-term vision for high return but planning is first and foremost.
Cairns has put itself on the map with some impressive developments, and although it is a bit of a blip on the radar, the attention it has drawn through such work has put itself on the map and it is reaping the rewards.
Brisbane must do the same. Remember what Expo did for the place? G20. The world is watching.
* Gary Koh is Senior Partner, Property, Gadens Brisbane
