Gisborne development site is ‘blank canvas’

A substantial block of residential development land near the edge of Gisborne’s urban boundary – holding enough land to sustain dozens of new homes when subdivided – has been placed on the market for sale.

The 47,676 sq m block in the suburb of Lytton West sits at the western border of Gisborne’s rural-urban boundary.

Currently a large grassed paddock, the freehold land is zoned Residential Single House under Gisborne District Council’s plan, allowing for subdivision of sections to 400 sq m.

Lytton West shopping centre is less than 1km from the Nelson Rd property, while a multitude of primary, intermediate and high schools are within a similar walking distance.

The L-shaped property is being marketed for sale by tender through Bayleys Gisborne, with tenders closing on June 10.

Bayleys Gisborne salespeople Simon Bousfield and Mike Florance said the property was one of the last remaining undeveloped addresses in Gisborne’s rural-urban boundary.

“Residential construction in Gisborne has been progressing at a rapid pace in recent years to keep up with the population growth. Opening up of this prime block at Nelson Rd will go some way to helping deliver accommodation solutions to satisfy the on-going demand from both home and section buyers,” Bousfield said.

Once the sizeable block was subdivided with council consents, residential property developers could look at a multitude of options to take the location to its next phase.

“Any new owner could look at selling the resulting subdivided bare land sections individually, selling adjoining sections to existing residential building firms in separate tranches comprising multiple sites, offering ‘one-stop’ house and land packages, or any combination of these three options.

“Similarly, a developer could look at creating a suite of differently-sized sections to offer different price points to the market.

“It really is a blank canvas opportunity with a multitude of development permutations which could eventuate,” Bousfield said.

Florance said REINZ statistics have shown Gisborne house prices growing consistently at around 30 per cent yearon-year over the past few months of 2021, with the February median price at $630,000 - up from $230,000 in 2016.