Huge Whenuapai greenfield site
A huge greenfield development block encompassing over 43ha of land is for sale in Whenuapai west of Auckland.
The property at 13 and 17-19 Spedding Rd is being marketed for sale by Colliers International through capital markets directors Blair Peterken and Jason Seymour; site sales director Josh Coburn, and site sales broker Sean Finnegan.
They are accepting offers by way of deadline private treaty closing at 4pm on Wednesday, March 21, unless the land sells earlier by negotiation.
Peterken says the property — featured in the latest nationwide Colliers Portfolio, released this week — is superbly positioned for future light industrial development.
“On the market for the first time in more than 40 years, Spedding Rd presents a rare opportunity to acquire a strategic development foothold in Auckland’s booming northwest,” he says.
“Its substantial size makes it the largest developable block in Whenuapai, while its roughly 900m of frontage to the northwestern motorway makes it arguably the best positioned.”
Zoned Future Urban, the property comprises two freehold titles with a total area of 43.2283ha.
“It is strategically located next to the Westgate retail precinct and is predominantly flat in contour with slight undulating rolling hills.”
Peterken says the site is currently used as a stock grazing farm and contains numerous structures including farm sheds and two houses.
“This will provide a solid holding income for landbank investors with an eye to the site’s development potential.”
Coburn says development in the west has been largely focused within a triangular area between Westgate, Whenuapai and Hobsonville Point, where residential development activity, infrastructure commitment and motorway access all converge.
“Spedding Rd fits beautifully within this triangle and is well poised to benefit from this activity,” he says.
“The Whenuapai Structure Plan of September 2016 and its associated Integrated Transport Assessment have identified the Spedding Rd site as an ideal light industrial precinct.
“We consider it likely this position will be ratified as the plan change is initiated by Auckland Council.”
Coburn says Whenuapai is the most centrally located large-scale industrial development area in Auckland, making it an attractive alternative to Drury to the south and Silverdale to the north.
“Whenuapai is directly on the Northwestern Ring Route, giving it excellent accessibility to both north and south,” he says.
“This transport corridor benefits from massive government infrastructure investment.
“The Upper Harbour Highway, northwestern motorway improvements, and recently opened Waterview Tunnel have made a huge impact on the flow of goods and people around the Auckland region and beyond.”
Coburn says Auckland’s northwest has long been considered an ideal location for the city’s growth.
“Located about 20km from the CBD, the area has unparalleled connectivity to the rest of Auckland which has brought substantial investment into the area.
“As an attractive location on the edge of the city’s rural-urban boundary, the northwest will offer lifestyle, recreation, housing and transport connections to more than 20,000 residents and 10,000 employees by 2040.”
Seymour says Whenuapai is a liveable, compact and accessible area with a mix of high quality residential and employment opportunities, making the most of its extensive coastline.
“Traditionally a rural village on the outskirts of Auckland, Whenuapai has recently undergone extensive planning to guide future development in the area. “It is strategically located next to State Highway 16, which connects Whenuapai to Kumeu-Huapai and northwest Auckland, and SH18, which connects to Albany, the North Shore and SH1.
“This provides good accessibility to the area, which is an important consideration for industrial businesses, and makes Whenuapai a natural candidate to accommodate significant future industrial growth.”
The Whenuapai Structure Plan sets out the framework to transform Whenuapai into an urbanised community which will accommodate
5000 new homes, extensive employment precincts and a new town centre.
The first stage of the rezoning under the plan is expected to take place this year.
Seymour says residential development in the area is already well underway.
“Oyster Capital, in conjunction with Fletcher Living, is developing
650 new homes at the corner of Brigham Creek Rd and Totara Rd, with residents starting to occupy them from the middle of 2017.”
The closest major centre to Whenuapai is Westgate — an emerging metropolitan centre about 7km from Whenuapai village, which is set to become the heart of the northwest, Seymour says.