When Pro Vice Chancellor (Business) Professor Caitlin Byrne walks up the steps and into Brisbane/Meanjin’s iconic Treasury Building, she feels overwhelmed. But it’s not the scale of the project that makes her feel that way. (Although that would be understandable. “They’ve got enough scaffolding to cover a ten-storey building in there!” she says.) Rather, it’s the building’s sheer beauty and potential.
“There’s the river on one side and the city centre on the other side: a constant thoroughfare of people. And then when you go into the building, the atrium space is like no other. There is such a sense of openness and inclusion. It offers an incredible opportunity to build community, both for the people who work and study here, and the wider community of Brisbane.”
The Treasury Building has been a beloved part of Brisbane’s cityscape since 1886, and the structure we know today was completed in 1928. A heritage-listed site drawing on 19th-century English and 16th-century Italian architectural styles, its exterior is covered with sandstone ashlar. Yes, you heard that right. Griffith’s newest (and also oldest) building is a sandstone. But it will also be very Griffith.
Law and order
There’s nothing quite like having your potential future employers just around the corner from your campus. The Treasury Building will house the Griffith Business School, Griffith Law School and School of Information and Communication Technology. With the Supreme and District Courts just a short walk away, along with banks, business, government and not-for-profit headquarters, students will be able to immerse themselves in the environments they’re preparing to enter.
“It will be very easy for students to access the courts, the judiciary, barristers, law firms, and easy for those professionals to come to campus to engage and network,” says Professor Therese Wilson, Dean of Law and Head of Griffith Law School.
This real-world approach continues across the whole building, with trading rooms for business students, industry-standard IT facilities and collaborative learning environments.
Mooting—simulating a court hearing—is a vital part of training for a career in law, and the purpose-built Moot Court will feature authentic 19th-century furniture gifted by the Supreme Court. “We received the original furniture used in the old Brisbane Supreme Court building. It will be a very special experience for students practising their oral advocacy skills in a room which is set up very authentically as a courtroom.”
Keep the soul, build the future
Griffith was the first Australian university to launch an Environmental Science degree, back when it first opened in 1975. This means sustainability has been top of mind right from the start.
“We are reusing and adapting an existing building to a modern use,” says Byrne. “It speaks significantly to the sustainability theme and a responsible leadership theme that underpins the Griffith ethos.”
Griffith alumnus Kellie Newman (B Visual Arts in Interior Design ’97), is Director at Cox Architecture, the architects working on the project. She and her team were determined to balance preservation and innovation. They’ve reinstated original rooms, revealed long-hidden features and delved into the building’s archive.
“Doors that have been stored away for 50 years have been reinstated back into the building,” she says. “We’re uncovering treasures like old heritage walls and windows.” The architects are also using original materials in creative ways. Stainless steel from the former kitchens will become planters, while granite from old hotel suites is being repurposed throughout the building.
The atrium, once an open courtyard where horse-drawn carts entered, is being transformed into the building’s centrepiece. “We’ve added three large skylights that reconnect the atrium with the outside, drawing natural light deep into the space. It will be a magical place,” says Newman.
That magical place will welcome everyone, so design is key. For the first time in its history, the building will have a wheelchair-accessible lift at the main entrance, integrated with minimal heritage impact but opening the space up to one and all. The redevelopment is also bringing First Peoples viewpoints into the design through carpet selections, colour palettes and artworks.
“We want to showcase the incredible work of our First Peoples colleagues through this building, as well as the story of the First Peoples,” says Byrne. “And we have more to do in engaging the community over the next 12 months to also bring the stories of place to the fore.”
There will also be spaces designed for wellbeing and coming together. “We’re creating a variety of space types: from quiet focus areas to shared areas that support group work and collaboration,” Newman explains. And the furniture systems are based on a modular approach that will enable future flexibility as the needs of the University change over time.
It’s all designed to encourage connections between people and subject areas. “We have a genuine opportunity to be fiercely interdisciplinary,” says Byrne. “There’s the opportunity to think about international, public and private law, alongside business and commerce and politics and public policy disciplines as well as cybersecurity, AI and computer science.”
Open to all
As for that beautiful atrium, it’s open to the general public. Everyone will be able to wander in and enjoy it, says Newman. “There will be guided tours where people can explore the building’s history, experience the space and take part in its new life, whether through events, exhibitions or simply a coffee in the heart of the campus. Bringing 6,000 students and 250 academics into the city centre will really enliven the top part of Queen Street.”
And Griffith alumni will be especially welcome, says Byrne. “We want this to be a place where alumni can also come and feel a part of the community. We’ll be welcoming you all with much enthusiasm and excitement! So do please come and enjoy this space whenever you’re in and around Brisbane.”
Just the beginning
Right now, the Treasury Building remains under construction. But what is unveiled in 2027 won’t be a full stop. “It will continue to evolve and adapt and tell new stories,” Newman predicts. “The building will celebrate the past whilst empowering a new generation of learning.”
And Byrne says she can’t wait to see the next chapter of the Griffith story unfold. “I’m really looking forward to seeing the energy and the relevance that an education institution can bring to a civic centre,” she explains.
“I think it’s an incredible opportunity for us to bring so much of what happens in our University into a larger community and public sphere—and at the same time, invite that public sphere into the University.
“The exchange of ideas, conversations and knowledge will help us to continue to deliver on what it means for a university to be a civic anchor. That’s a part of the Griffith story that the world has not really seen before.”
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Published 27 August 2026
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