Caniwi commits another $26m to property portfolio
By Pattrick Smellie
July 24 (BusinessDesk) - Wellington-based investment group Caniwi Capital has spent $26 million in two regional
commercial property plays: $21 million for a specialist cool store in the so-called 'Golden Triangle between Auckland,
Hamilton and Tauranga, and a $5 million 'big box' store site in the Wellington satellite suburb of Petone.
The coolstore purchase, at Waharoa, is served by both road and rail and is typical of the deals favoured by Caniwi's
principal, Troy Bowker, who seeks long-term buy and leaseback options in regional locations. The facility has been
purchased from the Halls Transport Group on a 20-year leaseback.
In Petone, the $5 million site of a former Briscoes store is next door to the Carters site that Caniwi purchased for
$8.4 million in April from former Hurricanes star Christian Cullen in an area already dominated by so-called 'big box'
retailers at a time when Petone is supplanting Lower Hutt's traditional position as the Hutt Valley's shopping mecca.
Caniwi now owns four properties in the area covering 3.5 hectares around the western end of Jackson Street, Petone.
Caniwi claims a property portfolio worth $350 million with major holdings being Tegel and Ingham chicken plants,
Victoria University student accommodation buildings in central Wellington and its growing portfolio of Petone
properties.
Bowker says the company continues to seek regional commercial property opportunities and is targeting further
investments in university accommodation.
(BusinessDesk)