Multiple units in Auckland’s newest urban retail hub go up for sale or lease
Retail units within Auckland’s newest suburban shopping and convenience precinct have been placed on the market for sale
or lease.
Some units 24 freehold terraced units have been planned for the development at 71 Jellicoe Road in Panmure. Five of the
units have already been sold, even before construction has begun, with one further property under contract.
The 19 remaining retail units range in size from 79 – 186 square metres, with rentals ranging from $43,294 plus GST per
annum for the smaller sites, up to $91,323 plus GST for the biggest site. Alternatively, sale prices for the units range
from $721,565 for the smallest 79 square metre site, up to $1,522,056 for the large 186 square metre premises.
The high-profile location for the new retail park is ringed by established light industrial premises and businesses. The
next concentric property belt around the Jellicoe Road arterial route location contains the retail town centre of
Panmure to the south, and the residential suburbs of Point England to the East, Glen Innes to the North, and
Stonefields/Mt Wellington to the west.
The high-stud units within the 71 Jellicoe Road site are being jointly marketed for sale or lease through Bayleys
Auckland and Barfoot and Thompson. Bayleys salespeople Chris Beasleigh and Eddie Zhong said that from a leasing
perspective, tenants were being sought who would offer a completely different customer experience from the retail
centres currently in existence in Glen Innes and Panmure
“From a hospitality operations dynamic, the lay out and elongated rectangular format of the Jellicoe Road development,
combined with the surrounding light industrial tenancies of the immediate neigbourhood, and the demographic make-up of
the wider residential suburbs definitely lends itself to the creation of a ‘hub’ style precinct,” Mr Beasleigh said.
“It’s about creating premises with a hint of industrial ‘grunge’ to their decore and fitout, with a tenant mix catering
for diverse clientele ranging from blue-collar workers during the day through to patrons and customers in the middle to
upper-middle socio economic brackets in the evenings and on the weekends.
“The concept could replicate something along the lines of the very successful Orakei Bay Village which has a range of
retail tenancies – including the high-end Farro supermarket and craft beer bar/restaurant Beer Brothers sitting
alongside a mix of boutique home-design and fashion outlets.
“The genesis of this style of operation first emerged at the Auckland City Works depot opposite Sky City. Over the past
five years, the number and variety of tenancies has grown incredibly - to the point where the destination now has a
range of design/marketing/advertising commercial tenants, three separate café eateries, three hair and beauty salon
treatment studios, a bagel bakery, a casual dining restaurant, a florist, and a craft beer bar,” Mr beasleigh added.
“It is easy to see this tenant mix being replicated at 71 Jellicoe Road which is poised to capitalise on the high
traffic follow along this busy stretch of road, combined with appealing to a clientele currently not being adequately
served within a five kilometer radius. That’s an attractive target market in population terms.”
Mr Zhong said the units were split into four blocks – with communal parking for approximately 89 vehicles. He said the
hub would have three separate vehicle entrance/exit points off Jellicoe Road, while the rear of the site bordered the
Eastern Line trunk of the Auckland commuter rail network.
Mr Zhong said the single-storey units were being constructed of concrete slab walls on structural steel frames with
coloursteel long run roofing. Right-angled glass canopies were being installed along the full length of all four blocks
– offering shade and element protection to the pedestrian walkways and outdoor seating areas in front of the units
underneath.
“From an investment perspective, there is nothing else like 71 Jellicoe Road being built in the area. The fact that five
units have already been sold ‘off plan’ underpins the appetite for new-build premises in this part of the city,” Mr
Zhong said.
“There is the potential for adjacent units to be reconfigured into bespoke single-use spaces if interest is confirmed
early enough in the construction timeline.”
Mr Zhong said each of the individual units had been designed with their own staff amenities. Building of the hub is
scheduled to begin in the middle of this year and be completed in early 2019.
The Jellicoe Road venture is being constructed by Auckland property development firm Northbridge Properties, whose
previous commercially-tenanted projects include multiple buildings on Auckland’s North Shore – at locations in Apollo
Drive and Triton Drive in Mairangi Bay, and Rosedale Road in Albany. The company has also just started work on a 30-unit
retail project in Takanini in South Auckland, of which 60 percent of sites are pre-sold in advance of completion.
Northbridge Properties has previously undertaken new-build office construction work for such corporates as 3M, Samsung,
Procter & Gamble, Billabong and Makita, as well as the Ministry of Education. Specialising in low-rise buildings and entry-level
investment units, the company has been responsible for bringing some $200 million worth of properties to the market.