The proposed 55-level 226-unit block to be built at 65 Federal Street central Auckland has now been canned. Photo / Supplied
The proposed 55-level 226-unit block to be built at 65 Federal Street central Auckland has now been canned. Photo / Supplied
The Australian developers of New Zealand’s tallest planned new apartment tower have bailed on the project, putting their site up for sale without building despite getting speedy Government-assisted consent.
Melbourne-based residential, hotel and commercial developer ICD Property is advertising the planned 183m 357-unit Federal Apartments residential and hotel tower site,saying it prefers Australian opportunities to those here.
The sale indicates it won’t now develop the tower but instead is seeking buyers for the land, saying consents are in place.
Others can carry on. Offers must be in by December 8.
The tower was approved under the Covid-19 Recovery (Fast Track) Consenting Act 2020, launched in 2020 when the pandemic hit to speed resource-consenting processes and accelerate significant schemes like the tallest tower.
Matt Khoo, ICD Property managing director, was quoted in an advertorial in the Herald’s commercial section on Saturday about the sale.
The opportunity to buy significant development sites in Australia had resulted in the decision to sell the Auckland property, he said in that piece ‘Going up: site approved for new 55-storey tower’.
The car park produces more than $1 million in rent a year, he said.
How Federal Apartments were planned to look when ICD won consent. Photo / supplied
ICD bought what is now the seven-level car parking building at 65-71 Federal St, on the Kingston St corner, from SkyCity Entertainment Group.
In April, the Herald reported on the plans for the site of the multi-storey car park, to be replaced by Federal Apartments.
The block was planned to be one level shorter than the existing 56-level The Pacifica apartments developed by Hengyi Pacific on Commerce St. But The Pacifica, built by Icon Construction is 178m so the planned Federal Apartments will be taller at 183m.
A Federal Apartments spokesman said: “65 Federal St will be the highest residential building because of the position it will occupy on the ridge above Queen St, however Seascape, will be slightly taller.
The project's facade, envisaged by architects for ICD. Photo / supplied
The property is owned by P0012 Auckland NZ Pty whose sole director is Tao Mai of Armadale, Australia. Collins St, Melbourne-based companies P0012 Auckland 1 Pty and P0012 Auckland 2 Pty own the NZ business that owns the Federal St land.
Ross Cooper of Auckland-based planners Tattico and Simone Grevasi of ICD Property was listed as contact people for the application, with Auckland’s Phil Eaton of Greenstone Group.
The application went to the Environment Protection Authority.
The car park ICD bought from SkyCity for the site of the country's tallest apartment tower. Photo / Google Maps
The scope of the project was to demolish the existing car parking building and to construct a mixed-use building in its place, the application said.
“The development is proposed to be 55 storeys and 357 residential apartments, retail and commercial premises and parking areas for cars, motorbikes and bicycles,” a document on the EPA’s website says.
How the pool might have looked in the planned building. Photo / supplied
The land around the site has a number of medium to high-rise residential and commercial buildings.
Australia’s Icon was listed in documents as the prospective builder. The local arm is headed here by Kiwi Dan Ashby who headed The Pacifica project.
Landlab is listed for landscaping, WSP Structure as structural engineers and Norman Disney & Young as service engineers.
Greenstone Group is the project manager, Holmes is the fire engineer, Flow has done the transport engineering and MEL Consultants are wind engineers.
Boyd PR was contracted to run an engagement approach to talk to neighbours and other stakeholders in the area, the application said.
The site is only the size of a large Auckland house section: 1641sq m, described in the architectural reports as “small”.
“The development will set a new benchmark for quality, design and liveability and will provide approximately 357 new homes,” the architectural report says.
“Aspects of the tower design have been heavily influenced by local Māori iwi through the mana whenua process.
Now, Bayleys are advertising the plans. National commercial and industrial director Ryan Johnston said the consent holds considerable value to any buyer.
Ian Little, Colliers’ associate research director based in Auckland, said: “Given the changes in the economy and the softening of the housing market, we’re not entirely surprised about this. Projects of that scale have a selldown period which will stretch out, given the changes in the market and higher costs. That has to be built into any feasibility for the developer, combined with increasing construction costs. Figures this year would have looked very different to when the developer initially conceived the project.”
“It won’t be the only one,” Little said of projects to be axed by developers. “There’s a good chance we’ll see other projects delayed and abandoned.”
One property investor with big Auckland commercial holdings said rising interest rates and falling house values would have “killed” a scheme as big as the Federal Tower.
How the tower might have looked on our skyline. Photo / supplied
“There’s no way they’d have gone ahead in this climate. The speed of the rising interest rates has taken everyone by surprise - me included. This won’t be the only project that’s canned. Watch that space. There’ll be lots more,” he said.
ICD is still carrying marketing for the Federal Apartments on its website, calling it ”the most aspirational project in Auckland – a transformational development that will propel the city into the future. ICD Property worked hand-in-glove with Auckland Council, the local community and investors on the design to deliver a landmark all of New Zealand can be proud of.
“Designed by globally renowned architects Woods Bagot, in partnership with local New Zealand firm Peddle Thorp, Federal Street is set to become a sleek 55-level tower that will stand around 183m high. Comprising 357 residential apartments and a 1000sq m ground floor marketplace designed to activate the Auckland CBD streetscape and serve as a community space,” ICD says of its now-ditched Kiwi project.
Bayleys now says the site is “prime central CBD position near Auckland’s City Rail Link, Skycity Auckland, the International Convention Centre and Auckland’s waterfront.”
ICD’s Khoo said on Saturday the company was proud of what had been achieved via the design and consenting process.
An executive at Boyd - the New Zealand PR firm which worked on the project - referred the Herald to ICD’s Vivienne Ngau. She did not respond to an inquiry about the land sale.
