Victoria Lane campus may take pressure off CBD vacancy squeeze
Three large floors of offices now available to lease in the Cuba Precinct are expected to relieve some of the pressure for space in the Wellington CBD.
Victoria Lane Office Campus will comprise three office floors together with ground floor retail, and is expected to be finished in the first quarter of 2023.
Colliers director and leasing expert Steve Maitland said it was the only base-isolated office building within Wellington CBD with any substantial vacancy.
He said rentals for the Victoria Lane office floors were on a par with rentals currently being achieved in A-grade buildings within the CBD with a far lower seismic rating.
‘‘Once these floors are leased, it will be a minimum two-year wait for comparable space.’’
Maitland said the Wellington landlord market was not reacting quickly enough to the seismic dilemma with numerous buildings sitting empty – below 33% of the new build standard (NBS) and requiring a full seismic upgrade to deem them leasable.
He said no tenants were expected to commit to a building until the NBS rating lifted above a minimum of 68%.
‘‘But where previously 68% NBS was acceptable, tenants are now setting new minimum thresholds of either 80% or 100% NBS,’’ he said. ‘‘Victoria Lane exemplifies what Wellington tenants are looking for with staff and client well-being, as well as business continuity, at the forefront of their minds.’’
The complex is a mix of new and strengthened heritage buildings
covering 16,000m2 and combining office, the creative arts, retail and apartments.
It has large open floors with excellent height, a central stair allowing for inter-floor connectivity, natural light, showers and toilets on every floor and ground floor parking for bikes, on-site parking and EV charging.
Greater Wellington Regional Council’s 400 staff and Whitireia WelTec’s 1000 creative technologies and art students are already based in the precinct.
Maitland said there were plans for additional new buildings but the soonest delivery for these was most likely 2025.
That left an immediate gap to be filled and which would exert continued pressure on the top end of the building market in Wellington where seismic was still the major issue affecting tenants, he said.
‘‘No landlord is starting with a ‘build it and they will come’ mentality. We have a conservative market and a high level of tenant precommitment – usually a mini
mum 60% to 70% – is required to be the catalyst for a project.
‘‘We are fully expecting that further buildings will be red carded, meaning that as new seismic reports are produced/received, some of these buildings will need to be vacated to be remediated.
‘‘Many existing Wellington office buildings will not achieve 100% NBS. So, to have the new generation of building coming through offering this ‘peace of mind’ with new seismic credentials is paramount.’’