Urban brownfield site with residential potential
The biggest piece of industrial land in the rural township of Matakana just north of Auckland, zoned for urban housing, has been placed on the market for sale.
The 3.0784-hectare landholding at 939 Matakana Road sits at the western entrance to the town which is a gateway between Warkworth and State Highway 1 and the smaller seaside settlements of Omaha, Port Wells, Leigh, and Pakari.
The freehold Matakana land currently operates as an industrial-scale cement and concrete yard and production plant but is zoned residential single house under Auckland City Council’s comprehensive development plan.
The rectangular-shaped property at 939 Matakana Road is now being marketed for sale by deadline private treaty through Bayleys Warkworth, with offers closing on June 2.
Bayleys Warkworth salespeople Henry Napier and Chris Blair said the property was the last remaining undeveloped address in Matakana’s rural-urban boundary (RUB).
Auckland Council’s residential single house zoning is aimed at maintaining and enhancing the amenity values of established residential neighbourhoods while
allowing for planned growth in locations around the greater city.
For locations such as Matakana, the ‘amenity’ values may be based on special
characteristics – such as semi-rural farmland surrounds, spacious sites, or large trees. The boundaries of 939 Matakana Road feature mature tree lines, with an additional row of well-established trees running through the centre of the block.
“Both Matakana and Warkworth’s populations have been growing substantially over the past two decades – with Matakana literally being a suburb of its bigger neighbour. These population increases have subsequently placed high demands on what was the limited housing stock land in both towns,” Napier said.
“Indicatively of how 939 Matakana Road will most likely evolve in the long term, a similar greenfield landholding immediately beside the property is well along the process of being subdivided into several streets of new residential sections, blending in seamlessly with the surrounding urban environment.
“The residential single house zoning of 939 Matakana Road is Auckland Council’s direct response to recognising that Matakana’s town boundary has expanded ever-further outward.
“The obvious appealing aspects of this property for large-scale residential subdivision developers are firstly its position on the edge of Matakana township, and secondly its access off the arterial road.”
The block for sale at 939 Matakana Road sits opposite the town’s primary school, and is a short walk from the town’s retail centre – famous for its weekend markets.
Auckland Council population growth forecasts for the Greater Warkworth/ Mahurangi Peninsula and surrounding settlements including Matakana estimate the region will sustain 25,000 permanent residents by 2030.
Blair said that the rate of the region’s population growth was expected to increase even faster with the expansion of State Highway 1 into a four-lane motorway running from Johnstone’s Hill tunnel to just north of Warkworth.
“Residential subdivision building in the region has been churning at full speed just to keep up with the population growth and opening up of this prime block at 939 Matakana Road will go some way to helping deliver accommodation solutions to satisfy the on-going demand from section buyers.”