Property investor to sell Manukau bulk retail centre

By ANNE GIBSON

North Shore property investor Jonmer Projects has put its Manukau Supa Centa on the block, seeking about $60 million for the 16 shops and foodhall.

Manukau was the first power centre, or bulk retail destination, in New Zealand and is one of the largest.

Jonmer has been developing the centre on the former Ford Motors 11ha site on the airport side of Manukau City since it bought the land in 1996.

Now it is quitting, planning to use the cash from Manukau to spawn a rash of bulk retail centres in Christchurch, Wellington, Hamilton and Tauranga and two provincial cities that it will not name.

Already Jonmer is well under way developing a bulk retail centre at Belfast near Christchurch. Plans are advancing for another in Wellington with two sites identified.

It has land at Papamoa near Tauranga and at Te Rapa near Hamilton for more centres.

The Manukau centre is bringing in $4 million rent a year, but has the potential to bring in another $1.9 million when further shops are developed. Marketing agents Colliers Jardine claim the sale will be the single biggest property deal in New Zealand so far this year.

Jonmer's executive chairman, Ian Calderwood, said buyers had until June 15 to put in an indicative bid.

Not all of the Manukau Supa Centre is for sale. Collier's managing director, Mark Synnott, said Hardwarehouse was sold about a year ago for $11.2 million, showing a 10 per cent yield.

Similarly, Harvey Norman owns its own store in the retail centre.

But all the other stores are on the block. Included are the access roads through the centre, off Lambie and Cavendish Drives, and the carparks.

Jonmer expects to sell the Manukau centre in one deal, ruling out the option of selling the shops individually.

Colliers used Property Council figures that showed bulk retail yielded the highest return of any property sector in the past three years, at an attractive 12.69 per cent.