Hawkes Bay's answer to Silicon Valley on the market

The large Whakatu House site is within easy reach of State Highway 2. Photo / Supplied

A multi-tenanted and fully leased Hawkes Bay office complex that has allowed small-business owners to launch their enterprises from professional yet affordable premises is for sale through Bayleys.

Eoin Carty and Steve Glasspole of Bayleys Hawkes Bay are marketing the land and buildings known as Whakatu House, in the Whakatu industrial area almost halfway between Hastings and Napier, by negotiation with offers closing on June 17.

The property is on the corner of Anderson Rd and Station Rd just 500m off the Hastings-Napier arterial State Highway 2 and close to rail sidings.

Surrounding properties include major coolstores, fruit packhouses, transport depots and a busy industrial park on the site of the former Whakatu Freezing Works.

Owned by Scales Corporation, the solid single-level office building and ancillary buildings have been refurbished and modernised, offering total lettable space of 3179sq m on a large corner site of about one hectare. A boundary realignment is currently being finalised and the existing building footprint leaves surplus land for future development.

The freestanding 1960s office block was extended twice in the 1970s and is now partitioned into general offices of varying sizes, meeting rooms, executive offices, a reception area and the usual conveniences. In addition, former self-contained bowling clubrooms have been converted to office tenancies, as has a building that was once home to the local fire station.

There is generous on-site carparking.

"The modifications and the thinking behind the development are innovative and have provided entrepreneurial local business people with professional surroundings at relatively low rental rates," said Carty.

"On average, the space rents for just $75 per square metre which, in Hawkes Bay or in any provincial centre, is very accessible."

Carty said that in taking this approach, the current owners of the property had created a "Silicon Valley-styled environment" with many young developmental companies now based in the Whakatu complex.

Tenants include independent telecommunications business Airnet NZ, sports clothing specialists KooGa NZ, and Kiwi Track, which develops transmitters for tracking wildlife.

"The property is fully leased with 24 tenants on varying lease terms which spreads the risk for an investor, and provides a current gross income of $233,000 plus GST per annum.

"Anchor tenant Mr Apple - New Zealand's largest integrated apple grower, packer and shipper - will be signing a new long-term lease which makes this property all the more attractive for an astute investor."