Huge Foodstuffs Auckland centre for sale

An aerial view of the big 13.2ha freehold Foodstuffs property for sale at 58-60 Roma Rd, Mt Roskill. Photo / Supplied

The giant Auckland distribution and office support centre of Foodstuffs North Island Ltd, based in Mt Roskill, has been put on the market for the first time in five decades.

The company is due to occupy a new purpose-built facility at Auckland Airport in 2021, freeing up the 13.12ha freehold site for sale on a leaseback basis until the move takes place; or by way of vacant possession with a delayed settlement.

"Sites of this scale and location very rarely come on the market," says Greg Goldfinch, industrial national director of Colliers International who, with colleagues Richard Kirke, Josh Coburn and Todd Kuzmich, is marketing 58-60 Roma Rd through an international expressions of interest campaign closing at 4pm on Monday August 27 – unless it sells earlier.

"With industrial vacancy at a critical low in Auckland, a purchaser could re-lease the Light Industrial zoned site to a new tenant on a medium to long-term basis; or establish a modern industrial park," Goldfinch says.

"More importantly, the property offers a significant redevelopment opportunity with its size, location and low site coverage making it suitable for a new owner to seek a private plan rezoning for higher and better use.

"Once Foodstuffs has relocated, the site could be cleared for the implementation of a master-planned new development that could encompass residential, retail, retirement living or a mix of all these uses.

"It has an enviable location with large-scale development sites within 7km of Auckland CBD being virtually impossible to find," Goldfinch says.

"We believe it's one of the most exciting commercial property investment and development opportunities to come onto Auckland's market this year and it will be immensely appealing to many prospective buyers, including industrial investors, land bankers, and residential, retirement and retail developers."

The irregular-shaped site spans four titles and has a net lettable area of 36,309sq m, giving it a low site coverage of 27 per cent.

The boundaries of the Foodstuffs property are roughly indicated by a white border. Photo / Supplied

The entrance is on Roma Rd and the property abuts Allison St, Shenandoah Ave, Marion Ave and the main arterial route of Richardson Rd.

"There are large car parking areas and a substantial concrete sealed yard facilitating good truck access along with multiple potential access points," Goldfinch says.

Sloping from a higher elevation at Richardson Rd down towards SH20, a lower-lying area next to the motorway of about 8ha, houses the main Foodstuffs' buildings.

Four interconnected buildings have been constructed at various stages since the 1960s.

• The largest property, at 60 Roma Rd, is in two titles of 123,553sq m and 154sq m. This is occupied by three buildings with a total net lettable area of 35,156sq m, including: 27,515sq m of warehousing, 7641sq m of office space, and 3056sq m of canopy.
• A 5168sq m property at 58 Roma Rd comprises a large, two-level office building with a net lettable area of 1153sq m.
• A 2413sq m property at 59 Roma Rd is used for car parking.

Goldfinch says the warehouses have stud heights ranging from 5.2m to 11m; while the offices have recently been refurbished to a good standard, with modern open-plan spaces.

"The vendors propose a triple-net lease until they vacate the site in 2021," he says. "They will also consider a delayed settlement structure, subject to satisfactory deposit and vendor due diligence of the purchaser."

Foodstuffs North Island Limited is a wholly New Zealand owned and operated co-operative business that started in 1922. It is the largest grocery distributor in the country, operating the well-known Pak'nSave, New World and Four Square supermarket brands.

Coburn says the property is surrounded by residential developments in an area with regular transport services and is close to a New World supermarket, The Warehouse and a mix of convenience retail outlets.

"It has an excellent location with a 380m frontage to the State Highway 20 motorway, near the recently opened Waterview Tunnel, which gives it exceptional connectivity to all areas of Auckland along with exposure to about 60,000 vehicles every day."

Coburn says Auckland is experiencing a period of unprecedented infrastructure development and investment.

"Few properties have benefited more from this than Roma Rd. With the opening of SH20 and the Waterview Tunnel, the property is now only 15 minutes' drive from the CBD and airport.

"Further infrastructure investment is set to give the property even greater appeal.

"The government's $4 billion Auckland transport plan includes light rail to the airport via Dominion Rd, with a station planned within walking distance of Roma Rd.

"The East West Link, which is in its design phase, will provide a new link between SH20 and SH1, improving connectivity throughout central Auckland's southern suburbs.

"Once completed, these transport links will ensure Roma Rd is within easy reach of all corners of Auckland.

"Auckland's population is expected to grow at an immense pace over the next 30 years, adding another 250,000 jobs to the economy and requiring the construction of 313,000 new dwellings," Coburn says.

"This growth is expected to have a positive impact on Mount Roskill's housing market, due to its central location."

Kirke says Auckland is New Zealand's economic and commercial powerhouse.

"It's our fastest-growing city and the heart of New Zealand's technology, commercial services, and food and beverage processing sectors.

"Globally connected, Auckland offers access to the largest airport and second largest shipping port in New Zealand.

"Auckland's economy contributes close to 40 per cent of New Zealand's total economic output, which puts it well ahead of Wellington and Canterbury at 13 per cent each."

Greg Goldfinch, Josh Coburn, Richard Kirke, Todd Kuzmich of Colliers International