Bay horticulture spurs industrial building projects in Hastings

Hawke's Bay horticulture businesses are helping fuel an industrial building boom Hastings, a new report shows.

Independent property strategy and valuation company Turley & Co's latest Industrial Focus report shows there was an 18 per cent increase in industrial-building consents value for Hastings District, with values rising from $77 million in 2014-2015 to $91m for 2016- 2017.

The regional impact was much higher, with consent values reflecting construction cost estimates alone – land and plant investments are extra.

"The Heretaunga Plains is seeing an industrial property development boom led by new food handling or processing, manufacturing and storage facilities, and associated industry."

That included five major completed, ongoing or planned industrial developments with a combined consents value of $68m.

Of those five projects, the Delegat Winery development, opposite the sports park on the Hawke's Bay Expressway, accounted for $27.2m.

Hastings District Council economic development and urban affairs committee chairman Damon Harvey said the council had made a "big effort" to ensure industrial projects could go ahead.

"Over the last 12 months Hastings District Council has made a big effort to get industrial zone projects underway.

"We have seen significant progress both in Irongate with the likes of engineering firm Axis as well as the large packing facility owned by Sunfruit Orchards already up and operating and in Omahu with the likes of farm machinery business Hustler, which has a state-of-the-art complex under construction.

"The Whakatu Arterial is also expected to drive increased occupancy into the Whakatu Industrial Zone.

"Hastings is the home of food production for the North Island, so it's pleasing to see this upswing."

On the other hand, the Turley & Co report recorded that estimated industrial consents values in Napier remained constant at $13m for both 2014-15 and 2016-17, reflecting 20 per cent of all Napier non-residential consents.

"Napier greenfields industrial land is much more constrained than Hastings, where large industrial sites are more abundant', the report said.

Overall, Hawke's Bay bare industrial land was in good supply and prime industrial property investments were "keenly contested", with more investors favouring industrial property investment due to "construction simplicity".