Deadline for sale of prime Lakefront land up tomorrow

Prospective buyers of a corner site of prime land near Rotorua's Lakefront have until tomorrow to make an offer.

The site, on the corner of Lake Rd and Rangiuru St, is being marketed as a top spot for a potential new hotel or serviced apartments development.

It went on sale the week the Government announced it would invest nearly $20 million from its Provincial Growth Fund for developments at the Rotorua Lakefront. The Rotorua Lakes Council is spending $20 million on the redevelopment also.

The current owner of the 2381sq m of freehold land is Odessa Properties, of which local businessman Ray Cook is the managing director.

Cook told the Rotorua Daily Post today interest had been strong but time would tell once they started to go through the offers from tomorrow.

He said it could take a week or two before there was any progress or decision on whether they would go ahead and sell.

The company had owned the land, which is on the coroner opposite the Soundshell near the Village Green, for about 16 years. There's a 14-bed motel and bed and breakfast on the land at the moment which is operating on month-by-month leases.

Odessa Properties bought the site when it built the Novotel and Ibis hotels as a way to protect its investment.

Since selling the hotels and land, Cook said the site was no longer needed.

He said the company toyed with the idea of building its own hotel and service apartments over the years but nothing eventuated and other projects took priority.

The property is being marketed by Colliers International by way of an international deadline private treaty campaign closing at 4pm tomorrow.