New Stonefields retail centre
Leases on offer for 23 tenancies in planned Lunn Ave development, says Colin Taylor
Tenants are being sought for a range of retail and commercial outlets that will become available within Stoneridge on Lunn, a big new Auckland shopping centre to be constructed in the new eastern suburb of Stonefields, between Remuera and Mt Wellington.
“The centre is due for completion in April 2020,” says Leroy Wolland, national director of Colliers International’s retail team, which has been exclusively appointed to market leases off the plans.
On the high-profile corner of Lunn Avenue and Ngahue Drive, opposite New World and PlaceMakers, the development will have 23 retail, commercial, food and beverage tenancies of between 80sq m to 609sq m.
The 10,400sq m development will comprise 7758sq m of large format retail and 2642sq m of commercial service, food and beverage and retail units, which will all front an extensive on-site car park with 421 parking spaces, providing tenants with excellent exposure to Lunn Ave or Ngahue Drive or both.
Access to the car park will be via a traffic light-controlled intersection from Lunn Ave.
The centre will have pedestrian access directly from the Stonefields walkway.
“Along with a proposed new bus stop on Lunn Ave, this is a major benefit to the centre, allowing both pedestrian and vehicle traffic to enter and exit the centre with ease,” says Wolland.
He notes that Lunn Ave is a very busy road with an average traffic count of 22,000 movements per day, while Ngahue Drive has around 26,000 vehicle movements a day.
Wolland says Stoneridge on Lunn will be anchored by The Warehouse, Warehouse Stationery and Noel Leeming, and will incorporate a highend dining precinct.
“Stoneridge on Lunn will have something for everyone seven days a week, over extended hours,” he says.
“Retailers will benefit from serving an affluent and growing catchment, while the centre’s high-profile location directly adjacent to the booming Stonefields residential area, ensures they will gain from significant exposure.
“With a strategic growth location, well-known anchor tenants, and highquality build by an established developer, there’s little doubt that Stoneridge on Lunn will have wide appeal to the local community.”
Wolland says there is already strong tenant demand for units in Stoneridge on Lunn, with Colliers in advanced tenancy discussions with several national brands.
The agency’s retail broker Chloe Franklin-Hall says the convenience and service retail units, located between The Warehouse entrance and the dining precinct, would suit both local and national businesses.
“We’re looking for a good mix of service uses including banks, travel operators, hairdressers, medical centres, optometrists and physiotherapists.”
Franklin-Hall says the food and beverage precinct, to the southeast of the site, will be a strong point of difference for the centre.
“Stoneridge’s dining precinct will drive foot traffic, increase visiting times, and extend the centre’s hours of operation, from morning coffees through to relaxed evening meals.
“The precinct itself will be built to a very high standard, with design elements drawn from the latest hospitality trends, including plenty of outdoor seating overlooking Stonefields.
“We’re looking for high-end operators who will ensure the centre complements the existing food and beverage offering along Lunn Ave, which is predominantly made up of franchises.
“A bespoke cafe and bistro will anchor the precinct, and we’re looking for top-quality grab-and-go businesses to supplement this.
“Operators could include a Mexican eatery, pizzeria or gourmet burger restaurant.”
Wolland says Lunn Ave has undergone tremendous growth in recent years and is now firmly established as a convenience retail destination for the surrounding suburbs.
The median household income in the primary trade area is $89,840 — well above Auckland’s overall median household income of $76,500.
The secondary trade area is even more affluent, with a median household income of $96,620.
Wolland says 2000 residents live within 10 minutes’ walk of Stoneridge. The wider trade area is even more populous, with 36,000 residents within a 2km radius and
131,000 within a 4km radius.
The catchment is growing fast, with the primary trade area population projected to increase by 26 per cent by 2028.
The developer of the new shopping centre is Nelson-based Gibbons, a family-run property company with extensive experience in developing large-format retail centres in the South Island.
Founded by the late Bill Gibbons in
1950, the company has built a diversified property portfolio that spans the industrial, commercial and bulk retail sectors.
Its track record includes builds for national retailers The Warehouse, K-Mart, New World, Countdown, PlaceMakers and Bidfood.