Construction of the $150 million Brisbane Airport Hotels and Conference Centre has officially kicked off.

Owners and developers, Anthony Flynn of Flynn Property Group and Scott Flynn of Scott Flynn Properties, were on site with Lord Mayor Graham Quirk and Brisbane Airport Corporation’s Julieanne Alroe to mark the milestone with the first turning of the sod.

Setting a new benchmark as the biggest external development venture and first 5-star hotel for Brisbane Airport, the $150 million development will create an estimated 1000 jobs during construction and a further 300 to 350 jobs once open.

The hot property will feature two Accor-branded hotels, the 5-star Pullman Brisbane Airport and the 3.5-star Ibis Brisbane Airport, bridged by the Brisbane Airport Conference Centre and conveniently located at the Domestic Terminal Precinct.

Lord Mayor Graham Quirk said the development signified growing confidence in Brisbane’s visitor economy, not only for leisure and events travellers but also for business travellers too.

“Last year the Guide to Hotel Investment in Brisbane highlighted that a shortage in internationally-recognised, full-service hotel rooms was causing Brisbane to forgo 121,000 visitors a year, and was hampering Brisbane’s ability to attract major events and conferences,” Quirk said.

“The construction of these two new hotels and Convention Centre will allow Brisbane to attract some of the $114 million a year in previously missed economic opportunity and drive international exposure of the city.”

Scott Flynn welcomed the start of construction by Watpac Limited as it moves them a step closer to delivering one of Brisbane’s most unique and competitive hotel and conference venues.

“This is an exciting development opportunity, and not just for us as owners, but for the airport and for Brisbane,” he said.

“There’s nothing like it here in Brisbane. We’re confident its combined facilities and unbeatable airport location will make this venue a major player in the hotel and conference market when it opens in September 2017.”

Set on 7,826m2 of prime airport real estate with exposure to 22 million passengers annually, the development includes a mix of 373 suites across the two hotels, as well as 1,735m2 of conference, meeting and event space in the connecting conference centre.

Brisbane Airport Corporation’s ceo and md Julianne Alroe said, “The construction of these hotels and conference centre in the heart of Brisbane Airport’s busy Domestic Terminal is an indication of the strong future passenger growth we expect.

“With this growth in mind, it is essential as a preferred gateway to Australia that the construction of quality new facilities in Brisbane continues so we can support the visitors who, will in turn, support the economic and cultural growth of Brisbane and Queensland.”

Positioned for the top-end and executive traveller markets, the 10-level Pullman Brisbane Airport will feature 130 rooms including two presidential suites, 10 junior suites, and 45 executive rooms, an upscale restaurant and lounge bar, leisure and lap pools, an executive club lounge and business centre. It will be the first purpose-built, branded 5-star hotel constructed in Brisbane in over a decade.

The adjoining nine-level Ibis Brisbane Airport will offer 243 rooms, including 99 superior rooms, alfresco dining and a stylish roof top bar with panoramic views across the airport to Moreton Bay, the CBD and Brisbane suburbs.

The Brisbane Airport Conference Centre will be capable of hosting up to 600 delegates across 13 conference and meeting rooms, including a 300 seat pillar-less ballroom, boardrooms, business centre, cloakroom and generous breakout terraces.

The hotels and conference centre will be an easy four minutes from the domestic terminal via a high level pedestrian walkway to be delivered by Brisbane Airport Corporation together with other supporting infrastructure.