Kumeu site in prime location to harness future growth

Three buildings are on the property for sale at 338 Main Rd, Kumeu.

A commercially zoned corner site with exposure to around 25,000 vehicles a day at Kumeu, 25km northwest of Auckland, will go under the hammer early next month.

The freehold 2124sq m property at 338 Main Rd, Kumeu, is being marketed by Paul Jarvie and Deborah Dowling of Colliers International and will be auctioned on December 11.

The property, which is on the market for the first time in 34 years, has four tenants and three buildings. The largest building is a high-stud, 286sq m retail and storage facility incorporating two shop units. The biggest unit of 216sq m is occupied by a produce business with rear roller-door access to an inbuilt chiller and a small mezzanine office space.

Adjacent is a second high-stud, long-run iron building of 209sq m tenanted by motor mechanics. It has dual roller-door access to the workshop with office, reception and amenities to the front.

The third building is a minor "cabin-styled" premises used as a fishing and tackle shop with a converted car and boat yard in front. A right-of-way access runs alongside it to a rear vacant section.

The three buildings have a net lettable area of 561sq m and generate a net annual income of $79,494.

"The site really lends itself to a developer wanting to capitalise on its strategic position," Jarvie says.

"This could involve removing the small cabin adjacent to the right-of-way and combining its site with the vacant section in order to open up a significant land area of about 790sq m for redevelopment.

"At the same time the remaining tenants on short-term leases would provide a valuable on-going income stream."

Formerly a Caltex service station, with service station use rights still existing, the site's Commercial zoning allows for a wide range of occupiers such as office, retail or wholesale and other commercial activities.

Under the proposed Auckland Unitary Plan there is provision for buildings of four to eight storeys, depending on the development. Permitted uses include commercial, leisure, residential or civic.

"Kumeu is only 20 minutes' drive from Auckland's CBD and has been recognised as a West Auckland growth area," Jarvie says.

"Predictions relating to its population growth have proved to be correct, and now the area, formerly known for its wineries and lifestyle blocks, is set to become a future West Auckland metropolitan hub."

Dowling says Auckland Council is investing heavily in its northwestern area to facilitate Kumeu's urban development in order to support Auckland's growing population as it expands westward.

"The town's first major supermarket opened this year and a major Mixed Use zoned town centre development of up to 20,000sq m of retail and other commercial space, with up to 150 residential units, is being considered just two minutes down the highway in central Kumeu."

Dowling says the area is undergoing rapid urbanisation. "Kumeu used to be somewhat isolated, but that's all changing. Auckland Council has identified the area as a key regional growth node in the new draft Unitary Plan, and we have already seen massive improvement in infrastructure and amenities including the nearby Westgate Centre that's now under construction."

Dowling says the Northwestern Motorway extension to Brigham Creek Rd brings it to within about 5km of Kumeu. Mains water and wastewater services are being upgraded.

"It's a good time to move in just as the area is really starting to boom.

"The new motorway improvements - less than 10 minutes away - have greatly reduced travel times to the Auckland CBD and North Shore, and Kumeu is now becoming a well-connected Auckland suburb."