Festival Hall Finds New Owner
Hillsong has acquired Melbourne’s iconic events venue Festival Hall for $23.375 million.
The megachurch plans to renovate the venue, creating a round theatre, and construct a smaller building to use as a ministry. It will use the site as a house of worship on Sundays, while other shows and events are expected to still be held at the site.
Festival Hall has been host to music acts including The Beatles and Frank Sinatra through to Oasis, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Smashing Pumpkins, and Lorde. It has also been known as the House of Stoush, hosting of a number of high-profile boxing matches, including some Olympic events in 1956.
Festival Hall was constructed in 1915 before being razed in 1955 by a fire, but was rebuilt ahead of the next year’s Olympic Games. Permanent heritage listing was obtained for the venue in 2018.
The vendors were long-term owners the Wren family. Hillsong entity Community Venues Limited now holds the site.
More Developments Fast-Tracked
New office buildings in Collingwood, Richmond and Frankston are among $625 million worth of shovel-ready projects fast-tracked this week by the Victorian Government.
It has now pushed through $7.5 billion worth of projects since March in response to COVID-19.
An $85 million timber tower at 36-52 Wellington Street by US group Hines will join the growing Collingwood commercial market that seen an influx of new office and residential projects in recent years.
In another popular city fringe location, a $130 million, 13-storey office building with ground-floor retail at 462-482 Swan Street in Richmond, next to Burnley Station, will become one of the tallest in the suburb.
The third of the office towers will by a $116 million office building of 8 levels, to be built at the Bayside Shopping Centre at 12 Balmoral Walk.
Also part of the approvals were dual 4-storey apartment complexes valued at $74 million in Reservoir, which will include 53 social housing units; a $24.2 million mixed-use development in Warrnambool; and a $93 million 72MW solar farm in Wangaratta.
Generational Opportunity for Investors and Land Bankers
A commanding freehold with a secure lease to the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, in the prime of one of Melbourne’s best-performing shopping strips presents investors and land bankers with one of the most attractive propositions of 2020.
Chris Kombi and Chris James of Fitzroys are marketing125-127 Upper Heidelberg Road, Ivanhoe by Expressions of Interest closing Wednesday, 18th November at 2pm.
Price expectations are in excess of $4.5 million.
The dual-fronted property comprises a 350sqm two-storey brick building, leased to the Commonwealth Bank on a 7-year lease plus options over the 230sqm ground-floor retail space. The CBA moved from within the strip 3 years ago to the property, combining the 2 existing shops in the building and completely renovating the premises to suit its modern open-plan layout.
A 3-bedroom residence above offers a second income stream. Total return is $205,000 per annum plus GST on a fully-leased basis.
Zoned Commercial 1, the land-rich property encompasses a large 755sqm site that offers significant scope for future redevelopment and value-add potential. It boasts a prominent street frontage of 10.4 metres to Upper Heidelberg Road, along with rear frontage to a right of way and Ivanhoe Plaza car park.
The historic campaign represents the first time the property has been offered for sale in more than 50 years.
“This is a genuine generational opportunity, with properties in this section of Upper Heidelberg Road rarely offered to the market,” Kombi said.
“Interest is expected from national and international investors and astute land-bankers looking to acquire prime sites in Melbourne’s famous shopping strips.”
“Melbourne commercial properties remain a compelling investment proposition. Interest rates are at an historic low and the share market continues to be volatile. This is an ideal opportunity for investors to acquire an income-producing asset with a secure lease to a blue-chip tenant, primely located within an established and affluent catchments.”
James said more people working from home and shopping locally is a trend that is likely to persist in the long-term.
“People have been reconnecting with their local communities. At the centre of those are Melbourne’s shopping strips,” he said.
“Upper Heidelberg Road, Ivanhoe is considered one of Melbourne's safest retail precincts for commercial property investors, with an excellent track record of very low vacancy rates.”
Disclosure: The weekly Fitzroys Property Wrap is for information only on transactions in the Melbourne property market. Fitzroys provides this information as a public service. We are not purporting that all sales and leases within this report were transacted by Fitzroys. Terms/Privacy © Copyright 2020 Fitzroys.
Fitzroys’ Walk the Strip report series has consistently recorded Upper Heidelberg Road among the tightest vacancy rates of Melbourne’s shopping strips over recent years.