Freehold site for tender in Newmarket

Opportunity is offered for a presence along Broadway. Photo / Supplied

For the first time since 1948, a freehold Newmarket development site is up for sale, with 18 months left on its lease.

Stuart Bode, of Bayleys Auckland, says the 357sq m site on the corner of Broadway and Edgerley Ave was for many years the overflow yard for the Nissan dealership opposite. It is now leased by TMG Group.

While the site at 407 Broadway is overshadowed by the Newmarket viaduct, the construction of a new motorway overbridge means that the viaduct will move northwards, leaving the site more open, says Bode.

The property is up for tender as part of Bayleys' latest Total Property commercial and industrial portfolio on behalf of a deceased estate. Tenders close on June 21.

With much of Newmarket's land being leasehold and almost all of it now developed, the site presents a rare opportunity for a developer or owner-occupier who wants to build a presence along Broadway, Bode says.

"The buildings on the property comprise a small sales office and canopy which could almost be lifted directly off, and the rest of the site is in asphalt. Someone wanting to build their own premises anywhere else in Newmarket would most likely have to first demolish the buildings on it."

The property has an annual holding rental income of $44,090 and provides the opportunity for a new owner to formulate plans for the site while drawing income from the existing lease term, he says. "Under the Business 4 zoning, a three-level office building would be allowable up to a height of 12.2m. That would be ideal for a professional practice."

The zoning allows for wide range of activities. Low- to medium-intensity light industrial and service uses are the dominant activities. It is conducive to the development of quality, medium-intensity business activity, says Bode.

There is also a proposal for this zoning to become Mixed Use, through Plan Change 196, which could open the site up to more options, he says.