A street level view of the warehouse and office complex at 55 Hugo Johnston Drive, Penrose.
A modern and adaptable head office and warehouse building in Penrose is expected to attract the immediate interest of buyers looking for a high quality investment industrial property or owner-occupiers looking to purchase it as their own premises.
"This property will be available with vacant possession in June in one of Auckland's most tightly held and popular industrial precincts," says Andrew Hooper of Colliers International who, with colleagues Greg Goldfinch and Hamish West, is marketing 55 Hugo Johnston Drive for sale by deadline private treaty closing on Wednesday May 11, unless it sells beforehand by negotiation.
The property currently houses the national head office and distribution centre of Siemens, one of the world's largest providers of energy and resource-efficient technologies, which will be relocating to Greenlane.
The 2084sq m building on a 4042sq m freehold site encompasses 1680sq m of highly specified office space with large floor plates and an impressive corporate reception and foyer area.
"However, the office layout could be reduced to 799sq m to increase the current 302sq m of warehouse space to nearly 1200sq m," Hooper says. "And there is additional opportunity to add further value to the property through reconfiguration."
The general construction of the building is of concrete foundations with concrete tilt slabs, Alucobond aluminium metallic cladding and longrun Colorsteel roofing.
The Business 6 zoned property comprises two levels of A-grade office fit out located across the front elevation. The ground level incorporates staff conveniences and amenities, a staff room, and a barbecue courtyard.
The 302sq m warehouse has a stud height of about six metres and houses four meeting rooms, a waiting area and access to mezzanine offices. Car parking is provided for up to 80 vehicles on site.
Hooper says exceptionally high demand for industrial locations in Penrose means values are expected to continue to rise.
"There is also a major new east-west transport link planned for this area which will revolutionise access for businesses in the vicinity. For all these reasons we anticipate significant interest in this property."
Hooper says Penrose is an ideal part of town for many office-based businesses and is a strong alternative to the CBD.
"Many firms can benefit from a suburban location like this - especially service-oriented companies which can realise efficiency gains by being positioned close to their customers in business parks and industrial areas like Penrose."
Goldfinch says the current record low industrial vacancy rates for south Auckland industrial properties, indicates that investors could expect a very quick up-take by new tenants for the area.
"The main arterial route of Church Street that joins Hugo Johnston Drive is also becoming characterised by an increasing proportion of showroom and office uses.
"Many properties in the area have been adapted for this purpose. Occupiers have been attracted to the considerably cheaper rentals than central city rates as well as the excellent transport access and handy location within easy reach of the Auckland CBD," says Goldfinch.
"Transport links from Hugo Johnston Drive are set to dramatically improve following the announcement of plans for a new east-west link between State Highway 1 and State Highway 20 that will connect directly with the southern end of Hugo Johnston Drive.
"A connection like this would make an incredible difference to transport logistics and efficiency for businesses in this immediate vicinity. Construction is projected to get underway in 2018."
Hugo Johnston Drive already provides immediate access via Church St to Great South Rd and the Penrose/Mt Wellington SH1 interchange. It is also strategically located mid-way between the southwestern and southern motorways.
West says the building is an attractive facility in a sought-after industrial location at the southern end of the Penrose industrial precinct.
"Brand name neighbouring tenants with large scale operations include Sharp, World Vision, Carter Holt Harvey and BJ Ball.
"The location's is near to the large residential catchments and labour pools of Onehunga, Mt Wellington and Ellerslie while the Te Papapa train station, on the Onehunga branch line of the Auckland rail network, is also only 200 metres away."