Work has officially begun on Devonport’s long-awaited $60 million Stony Rise Village, more than a year after the state government used special legislation to push the project past a planning roadblock.
Premier Jeremy Rockliff turned the first sod at the Stony Rise site on Friday, joined by Devonport Mayor Alison Jarman, Tipalea Partners chief executive Scott Spanton and Fairbrother’s Marcus Perkins.
The 6,300-square-metre shopping centre will be anchored by a 4,000-square-metre Woolworths – the largest in Tasmania’s north-west – alongside a Chemist Warehouse and 15 specialty retailers.
Spanton said the word of the day was “finally”.
“It’s been a long haul, one that we weren’t expecting to be this long and it’s been a lot of effort from a lot of people,” he said.
“This project’s a $60 million vote of confidence in Devonport and in Tasmania.”
He said the broader precinct, once fully built out, would deliver 2,000 job opportunities across the site. Leasing take-up has already climbed to about 70%.
The Devonport City Council initially approved the project, but the Tasmanian Planning Commission knocked it back in 2024 over concerns about public transport and impacts on existing town centres.
The state government then passed the Land Use Planning and Approvals (Stony Rise Development Approval) Bill 2024 to override that decision – a move backed by Labor but opposed by the Greens, who raised questions about Liberal Party donations from Tipalea.
Rockliff defended the intervention, saying projects like this need political backing to get off the ground.
“There are many naysayers, too many in fact, around this state,” he said.
“And thankfully, in the last 12 months, key projects have gone ahead, because people have had the courage to see them through. And this is one of those projects.”
Jarman said the project was proof Devonport was “open for business”.
“If you’re going to do it, do it in Devonport,” she said.
“We can show the rest of the state how things can be done, when you work with everybody.”
She said the development would sit alongside a new sports precinct and further growth planned for the area.
Fairbrother’s Marcus Perkins said the build would be a boost for local employment.
“The community’s needed this facility and the community’s been completely behind it,” he said.
He said Fairbrother employed 176 people out of its Devonport office – the company’s largest contingent – including 32 apprentices based in the region.
Three new construction management roles have already been created for the Stony Rise project, on top of trades positions to be filled through subcontractors.
Sheffield firm Treloar Civil has started bulk excavation to level the site, with steelwork and precast detailing now underway off-site.
Stony Rise Village is the fifth project Tipalea and Fairbrother have worked on together.
