Mortgagee tender in rapidly changing Greenlane

The Tony Tay Group property for sale at 540 Great South Rd. Photo / Supplied

Property developer Tony Tay's Greenlane headquarters building, at 540 Great South Rd, Greenlane, has been put up for sale by ASB as a mortgagee tender.

Owned and mainly occupied by Tony Tay Group, the 1914 sq m property is being sold by CB Richard Ellis brokers Colin Stewart and Jonathan Ogg as "substantially vacant" with the tenders closing on June 24.

The property, built in 1979 and extensively refurbished over recent years, has two floors of office and showroom space, basement storage and parking for 37 cars. It has an annual rent roll of $110,000 from three tenants who occupy one third of the building.

Stewart says the building is unusual for a city fringe office. "It has 800 square metre floor plates, which are big by city fringe standards, and the best parts of the building, the top floor and ground floor showroom, are vacant," Stewart says.

"This is a solid city fringe investment for an owner-occupier who will get it attractively fitted out."

Before Tony Tay Group bought the property it was a vehicle showroom and the Call Plus call centre.

The building sits on a 1276 sq m leasehold site, zoned Business 4 under the Auckland City Council's District Plan. Car parking is provided on an undivided half share of a 914 sq m freehold site at the rear of the property zoned Residential 6A. Stewart says both the leasehold and freehold land is being sold and the leasehold will collapse on settlement by a new owner.

The two level and part basement building has an 829 sq m first floor, 819 sq m ground floor and 266 sq m basement.

Site plans show the rectangular shaped main site falls away from its Great South Rd frontage which provided room for the development of a part basement. Stewart says a one metre reinforced concrete back wall retains the rear boundary. "This wall drops away to the lower level car park running through to Woodbine Ave."

Motorcorp Distributors leases the basement while the building's ground floor comprises a vacant foyer, refurbished showroom to the Great South Rd frontage and two rear tenancies occupied by a church and a law practice. The vacant top level has a foyer, reception and waiting areas with offices to either side or a boardroom.

Stewart says the property was extensively upgraded in 2007 and included refurbishment of the ground floor and first floor, an upgrade of the bathrooms and kitchens and exterior of the building. "It is an above average property in keeping with similar buildings in the local area."

The building occupies a prominent location on Great South Rd, close to the intersection with Greenlane East and the Harp of Erin and is on a route carrying heavy volumes of traffic seven days a week. It is within a short drive of the Greenlane motorway on-ramp and Auckland's main arterial routes.

"Traffic congestion around the Greenlane motorway ramps will be improved as part of the $195 million Newmarket Viaduct project," Ogg says.

"Because more than 16 per cent of southbound traffic crossing the Newmarket Viaduct exits at Greenlane, a new southbound lane is being added from Market Road to Greenlane along with a motorway noise wall.

"This is part of the project replacing the 43-year-old six lane Newmarket bridge with a seven lane structure and four lanes from the city to Greenlane for Rugby World Cup traffic.

"The project will be finished by February next year and will further enhance Greenlane's reputation as a sound location for business," says Ogg. "The objectives of the council's zones in this area are to encourage development of vibrant urban areas through a range of mixed use business, education and leisure activities close to existing town centers.

"Apartments and housing are not permitted as of right in the Business 4 zone as it is applied to existing areas of low to medium intensity where light industrial and services are dominant."

Ogg says the Residential 6A part of the property is a different story as dwellings at a density of one unit per 375 sq m are permitted.

"The zoning allows for two units to be built on the rear car park, but it has existing use rights under the Resource Management Act for parking."