The Lookout Restaurant and Bar at 60 Church Rd, Te Rapa, Hamilton. Photo / Supplied
The Lookout Restaurant and Bar at 60 Church Rd, Te Rapa, Hamilton. Photo / Supplied
Two high-profile Waikato properties housing successful hospitality businesses are for sale in Morrinsville, and in Hamilton's booming industrial and commercial centre of Te Rapa to the northeast of the city centre.
"Both properties are for sale by private treaty with no deadlines; under sole agency with us," says Karl van Gisbergen, director industrial sales and leasing with NAI Harcourts in Hamilton.
The Te Rapa property van Gisbergen and his colleague, Sean Stephens, are marketing is occupied by The Lookout Restaurant and Bar at 60 Church Rd.
A total building area of 455sq m comprises a 415sq m main restaurant and kitchen area complemented by a 40sq m mezzanine deck; while the freehold 3023sq m site encompasses 30 onsite car parks.
Van Gisbergen says the five-year old building, housing The Lookout recently reopened with a new fit-out completed by the tenant, The Helm (North) Ltd.
"The property earns annual rent of $160,000 net on a nine-year lease commencing January 1, 2016 with two-yearly market reviews and two rights of renewal of six years each. With 7.5 years remaining on the current term, this takes the potential final expiry date to December 31, 2025," he says.
Stephens says the property is zoned Industrial under the Hamilton City Council's Operative District Plan and is located in the only commercially-zoned hub of the sought-after Te Rapa area close to national corporate offices and just 500 metres from the giant The Base shopping centre.
As its name suggests, The Lookout offers excellent views from its deck. Photo / Supplied
"The immediate area is made up of a range of office, bulk retail, residential and industrial properties. Nearby is the large industrial area of Te Rapa North while large residential developments have been completed to the north and northeast."
He says The Lookout attracts a wide variety of clientele and caters for all occasions. "As its name suggests, it offers great views from the deck to the greater Te Rapa area and beyond.
"The area has been crying out for a restaurant and bar of this nature, and the new tenants haven't disappointed in what they have delivered, judging by the crowds that have been a regular feature."
Van Gisbergen says The Lookout occupies the site of a popular restaurant, bar and deli called Pumice which was destroyed by fire in 2013.
"A new build was completed for the operator and Pumice reopened in November 2015. However, after trading in the new premises for two years, the business was sold to new operators and rebranded as Ember.
"Due to unforeseen circumstances, the operators assigned their lease of the property to the owners of the Helm Restaurant and Bar as their second Hamilton outlet. The Helm is one of Hamilton's hospitality success stories, with the operators having been in the industry for over 15 years, and the partnership had been looking for a second business opportunity for some time.
"They undertook a refreshed fit out and opened in June with The Lookout as the new branding. They report that trading is above expectations which has reinforced their belief of the location and their plan to recapture the huge patronage that the Pumice used to have."
An interior view of The Lookout Restaurant and Bar. Photo / Supplied
Stephens says that being a relatively new construction, the building rates 100 per cent seismically. "Investment properties such as this with strong covenants and seasoned operators rarely come to market, especially in this location," he says.
"The building was constructed by Downey Construction, which has built a number of buildings in the immediate vicinity and whose head office is in the same road.
"All the key elements are there for an investor, including potential growth factored into the lease. This is the first time the property has been offered for sale, so it's seen as an opportunity to grab a marquee investment with upside in a growth area of the city."
In May, Stephens and van Gisbergen facilitated the sale of the property next door to The Lookout at 62 Church Rd. That property, which has a floor area of 1879sq m, has Flex Fitness as the anchor tenant and sold for $3.46m.
The second hospitality property van Gisbergen is taking to the market is The Top Pub and Function centre at the gateway to the town of Morrinsville at 2618 State Highway 26 – about 20 minutes' drive northeast of Hamilton.
"This is being sold as either a freehold going concern property and business; or just the sale of the land and buildings," says van Gisbergen.
Frontage of The Top Pub at 2618 State Highway 26 Morrinsville. Photo / Supplied
"The business owner, who is also the vendor, is at an age where he's had enough. He wishes to divest of the business and property, either as a going concern operation, or by selling the land and buildings on their own. He would consider staying on as a tenant continuing to run the business for up to a year if this was of interest to a purchaser.
"His price expectation is around $1.75 million for the land and buildings or $1.85 million as a freehold property with a going concern business."
The Top Pub has a large outdoor garden bar area and a fully serviced reception and function centre, along with 14 gaming machines.
"An attraction of this property is its low site coverage with just 700sq m of building area on a freehold 3891sq m site offering potential for future development on the high-profile corner," van Gisbergen says.
"The property is strategically located at the crossroads of the town's bypass to the Coromandel. The key to upside here is the opportunity to potentially further develop this large commercially zoned site."
Van Gisbergen says Morrinsville already serves as a vibrant provincial home to major national and international companies like Fonterra, de Gussa, Power Farming, Seales Winslow and Greenlea Meats.
