Premises for small businesses to go ga ga over

St Albans on Eden sits on prime city fringe land at the corner of Dominion Rd and St Albans Ave and contains 715sq m of ground-floor retail space. Photo / Supplied

Creative thinking and research by Auckland-based National Asset Group has seen plans drawn up for a destination retail and commercial property based around childcare and small businesses on a valuable piece of land at the sought-after city end of Dominion Rd.

The St Albans on Eden development on the corner of Dominion Rd and St Albans Avenue is expected to be completed just before the Rugby World Cup kicks off in 2011 and will include, as an anchor tenant, a 75-place childcare centre on the second floor.

The building will also include two levels of secure basement parking for 68 cars, 715sq m of ground-floor retail and "work and live" units on the top level. These feature a two-bedroom apartment and a separately accessed office space, with extensive north-facing decks to take advantage of the expansive views from the property's ridge-top location.

The "work and live" units will also include six secure undercover car-parks and a safe storage area.

Jan Hutcheson, Bayleys Auckland retail leasing specialist, says the ground floor space is currently being marketed to retailers who will benefit from the strong local catchment and foot traffic generated by parents dropping children off to the pre-school. She is marketing the retail space for lease or sale in conjunction with Leah La Hood, of Bayleys Auckland and Ronan McGinley of Retail Solutions Auckland.

An experienced East Auckland operator is establishing an early childhood centre for 2 to 5-year-olds on 817sq m of floor space within The St Albans on Eden complex. The centre will occupy the entire second level which includes around 375sq m of outdoor play area, with ample car parking at ground level for ease of drop-off and pickup for parents.

Hutcheson says the 715sq m of ground-level space includes provision for a cafe or restaurant and up to six retail stores.

"We are speaking with child-related retailers, cafes, delis, restaurants and pharmacies. The ground floor will be configured according to retailers' requirements, which means we could end up with just two or three larger occupants."

She says the property is ideally located about 200m from the Dominion Rd shopping precinct. "This is a popular city fringe location that benefits from a range of good businesses within it, including cafes, restaurants, showroom, office and retail tenants. The whole area is currently experiencing a rejuvenation with the opening of a new Nosh Foods Centre close by."

National Asset Group says it acquired the site in 2007 and went about getting a notified resource consent for it. "We have worked closely with the local authorities since 2007 to deliver a high-quality mixed-use development that will add value to the local community. We were pleased to secure a reputable childcare centre as that was one of our key objectives."

Few sites along the city end of Dominion Rd have or do become available for development and this one is an ideal place for smaller to medium-sized businesses which wish to be located within modern premises on one of Auckland's busiest arterial routes leading into the city centre.

Hutcheson says there is opportunity for owner-occupiers to buy their own premises.