Offshore investor snares Port Melbourne site for years part of the West Gate Bridge toll collection facility
An offshore investor seeking to establish an Australian property portfolio took just four days to settle on the purchase of two adjoining Industrial 1 zoned blocks of land in Melbourne’s inner south-west.
The high-profile sites (pictured top, left and bottom) spreading 4413 square metres and covering 32-38 Cook Street in Port Melbourne are trading for a speculated price of $6.4 million.
Between 1978 and 1995, the parcels were part of a 3.1 hectare site owned by the government and occupied as the West Gate Bridge toll collection facility.
The state sold this site, 12-62 Cook Street, to MAB in 2010 for $13 million.
The property, which also has frontage to the West Gate Freeway, has since been subdivided and sold down separately.
Some of the subdivided portions have been redeveloped including 62 Cook Street, now a Shell service station, and which sold as an investment in 2016 for $22 million.
CBRE’s Guy Naselli, Jake George and Harry Kalaitzis with Vinci Carbone’s Joseph Carbone and Frank Vinci marketed 32-34 and 36-38 Cook Street for industrial property developer Corplex which is looking to invest into their other projects.
The purchaser is seeking to develop the site to capitalise on its highest and best use.
It was offered with a permit to be replaced with office-warehouses. The deal values the land at $1460 per sqm.
The holding has benefited from the rezoning of land at Fishermans Bend to cater for a residential population of 80,000, and a new employment precinct.
Mr George said the asset allowed the purchaser to capitalise on the upcoming low vacancy due to the Fishermans Bend framework and immense residential development that will take place and squeeze existing businesses out from the south side of the freeway and into the employment precinct.
