Developer snares major site near Queen Vic Market
Singapore’s Lim family has sold a six level car park investment near Queen Victoria Market – the city’s priciest development site sale in five years.
Malaysia’s biggest developer, Sime Darby Property – a subsidiary of Sime Darby Berhard, is the buyer, outlaying $115 million according to sources.
Covering 3218 at 380 Queen Street, on the north east corner of A’Beckett, multiple towers could be considered; this pocket, the north west tip of Melbourne’s Hoddle Grid, has attracted significant high density apartment skyscraper development for more than a decade.
It near a 3.2 hectare piece of the Queen Victoria Market recently approved by planning minister Sonya Kilkenny for a $1.7 billion redevelopment with three buildings including a 1200-bed student accommodation complex to be owned and operated by Scape.
Part of that project, Gurrowa Place, will a car park which was built over the city’s oldest cemetery.
More skyscrapers set for top of town
The improvement contains a 2042 sqm with a 9B classified showroom, which is leased, and 548 car parks over five floors, which could be operated or run by a third party, the marketing agents said.
The deal marks a return to Victoria for Malaysia based Sime Darby which sold out of its local development portfolio in 2019. However also in that year it acquired three car dealerships, in New South Wales and Queensland. The group is considered Malaysia’s biggest developer based on its pipeline.
Also this year, the City of Melbourne listed a multi-level car park investment in Little Collins St with c$155m price hopes (story continues below).
Next chapter for corner site
Cushman & Wakefield’s Oliver Hay, Daniel Wolman and Leon Ma closed an expressions of interest campaign for 380 Queen St in May.
The Lim family paid $9m in 1991.
Attempts were made to sell it in 1999 and 2015 – the latter, with a c$70m guide.
The latest deal is the priciest for a Melbourne CBD development site since Mirvac paid $200m for the ex-Melbourne Exhibition Centre site at 7 Spencer St.
That group later called in Tokyo group Daibiru as co-investor in a multi-building redevelopment, including a BTR tower under construction at the south west corner of Flinders St.
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