Plenty On The Menu For Property Investors As Food And Beverage Block Goes On The Market For Sale

A block of retail shops which reflects the blending of Auckland’s heritage character with the city’s evolving population demographic has been placed on the market for sale.

The two-storey premises at 555–563 Dominion Road in Mount Eden is an early-1920s period building housing five Chinese food and beverage entities – ranging from eateries noted for their spicy chicken dishes through to a steamed bun kitchen and a karaoke bar.

With an art deco façade featuring geometric parapets and ornate detailing along the roofline, along with cantilevered awnings over the pavement, the building reflects Mount Eden and adjacent Sandringham’s emergence as an Auckland suburb post World War One.

Sitting on the corner of Wiremu Road on the southern side of the Balmoral intersection, the corner block is being marketed for sale at auction on August 5 through Bayleys Auckland.

Salespeople Oscar Kuang and James Chan said the property was located some six kilometres from Auckland’s central business district on one of the busiest city-fringe urban intersections.

Kuang said the 685-square metre building was located on some 680 square metres of land zoned Commercial 8D / Business – Local Centre under the Auckland Unitary Plan.

“With some 20 metres of street frontage onto Dominion Road, the rear of the building – accessible from Wiremu Street - has parking for approximately six vehicles and contains various food waste disposal units for the five tenancies,” he said.

The five tenancies within the block generate a combined annual rental of $200,700 plus GST, and encompass:

• Sichuan cuisine restaurant Lao Sze Chuan occupying the prime 80-square metre corner location on a current lease running through to 2024 with rent reviews every two years
• BBQ restaurant and bar Gogo Music Café – renowned for its spicy chicken casserole and hand-pulled noodles - occupying 320 square metres on a current lease running through to 2024 with rent reviews every two years
• Spicy House restaurant – renowned for its chilli-fried boneless chicken and fried rice - occupying 80 square metres on a current lease running through to 2021 with rent reviews every two years
• Bao bun eatery Bun Hut occupying 80 square metres on a current lease running through to 2022 with one further six-year right of renewal and rent reviews every two years and
• Bubble tea house Wu Cha occupying 80 square metres on a current lease running through to 2026 with one further six-year right of renewal and rent reviews every two years.

Auckland Council’s Commercial 8D / Business – Local Centre zoning provides for premises to service the needs of the surrounding residential population by sustaining commercial offices, food and beverage outlets, and retail operations through buildings up to four storeys high.

Chan said that under these zoning guidelines, 555–563 Dominion Road could either be strengthened up to modern standards while retaining its art deco facade, or could be replaced with a modern and higher structure. The property has a new building standards rating of 19 percent.

“The property sits at the gateway to a suburban hub of Chinese and Asian food stores along Dominion Road and is appropriately tenanted to service this population make-up,” Chan said.

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