Toyota sells ex-research centre
Monash University is paying c$66 million for an underutilised commercial site opposite its Clayton campus.
The 3.63 hectare Notting Hill holding, 611-633 Blackburn Road, at the north west corner of Normanby, was offloaded by Toyota, which paid Pellicano $13.3m in 2003 to construct a double storey office occupied until five years ago as a research and development centre.
The property abuts a 1.7ha fulfilment centre which Woolworths’ development arm Fabcot acquired for $14.3m in 2017.
Hallmark, then later, private investor Jason Yeap, also once controlled 611-633 Blackburn Rd.
University expands footprint
A university representative declined to confirm plans for the Notting Hill property, which also includes a workshop and c208 car parks.
Zoned Special Use, in the heart of the Monash National Employment and Innovation Cluster – Victoria’s largest employment zone outside of the Melbourne CBD – some 2.74ha is ready for immediate development.
The purchase comes as construction of the $553m Victorian Heart Hospital, on the school’s Clayton campus, nears completion (story continues below).
Also in the pocket, earlier this month, Monash pre-committed Moderna to a manufacturing facility at a site between the Australian Synchrotron, which was completed in 2007, and 10 year old Melbourne Centre for Nanofabrication.
CSIRO and Carpet Court are local occupiers too.
Toyota, which was represented for the disposal by JLL’s Josh Rutman, Noral Wild, Jesse Radisich and Ming Xuan, ceased Australian car manufacturing in 2017.
Functions undertaken at Notting Hill were moved to the group’s Port Melbourne headquarters, and a recently constructed $40m Centre for Excellence, at the former Altona North assembly plant.
In June the car marker’s Material Handling division announced plans for a 12,827 sqm Operations building on three hectares it owns on Discovery Rd, Dandenong South.
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