Developer pays $6.45m for East Melbourne building

The 510 square metre site is between the CBD and MCG.

A developer has snapped up the East Melbourne home built in 1883 by Thomas Joshua Jackson, who with his cousin, Henry Young, owned Young & Jackson hotel opposite Flinders Street Station.

Eblana, at 140-142 Jolimont Road, is trading for $6.45 million.

Jackson’s wife, another cousin – Sarah “Sally” Cavanagh – lived at the home until her passing in 1924.

A year later, it traded to the commonwealth government and was for a period the postmaster-general head office.

The vendors paid $837,500 for Eblana in 1997 before undertaking a major restoration – images of which Colliers International’s Jozef Dickinson and James Wu did not use in their sales campaign.

Knight Frank unsuccessfully marketed 140-142 Jolimont Road in 2012 when the price guide was c$4m.

Eblana at 140-142 Jolimont Road, East Melbourne

Between the city and Melbourne Cricket Ground – Colliers International heavily promoted the development prospects of the 510 square metre site.

Zoned Commercial 1, it could make way for apartments, a hotel or office – or a project combining these uses.

The property neighbours a six-storey apartment building, however there are projects of about eight levels in the street.

Upper floors within any redevelopment would capture CBD views over a three-storey complex across the road, part of Becton’s boutique Wellington Gardens housing estate (story continues below).

Eblana includes a two level terrace with horse stables at the rear.

A single floor extension was later added for a billiards table.

Quiet suburb set for cranes

Eblana is about a hundred metres from the 86-90 Jolimont St office which Cricket Victoria sold in 2015 for $17.05m.

On 1114 sqm – Colliers also targeted this site to developers – its result coming in more than $7m over reserve.

In May we reported Sydney’s Luxcon Developments was proposing to extend and repurpose a nine -storey office at 372-380 Albert St, East Melbourne, for which it recently paid $30m.

Six months ago Queensland’s Pask Group paid the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists $22m for the historic and heritage protected College House, on 1873 sqm at 254-260 Albert St.

Also in the suburb, at 200-216 Victoria Parade, construction of a high-end office Victoria Place has begun.

Proposed by Time & Place and Golden Age Group, and sold on a funds-through basis for $328m in February, this commercial building will replace two former National Australia Bank data centres.

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Marc Pallisco

A former property analyst and print journalist, Marc is the publisher of realestatesource.com.au.