Sweet deal in buzzing Grey Lynn

"This freehold property has been well maintained and is attractively presented by each of the three tenants," says Cam Paterson, metro manager and broker for Barfoot & Thompson Commercial who, with colleague Murray Tomlinson, is marketing 28 Mackelvie St for sale by tender, closing at 2pm on Tuesday April 12 unless it sells earlier by negotiation.

The building, earning combined net rent of $216,150 annually, has a total area of 685sq m and was expanded in three stages with the oldest portion constructed in the 1920s and the most recent in 1958.

The lower level tenancy of 370sq m is occupied by fashion brand The Stolen Girlfriends’ Club which pays $66,600 per annum on a lease with a final expiry of July 2016.

The upper unit of 225sq m and two onsite car parks are leased to furniture, lighting and hardware supplier Katalog NZ Ltd.  

The third tenancy of 90sq m, also on the upper level, is rented for $40,500 per annum by Winter Agencies Ltd – Haviana on a lease expiring in November 2019. The tenant also pays $2600 per annum for one car park.

"The property is ideal for an investor looking for a secure holding with multiple income streams," Paterson says. "It will also appeal to owner occupiers and a patient developer who could work with the existing term tenancies while exploring future possibilities."

For sale on behalf of Centro Investments Ltd, the building features classic character space that is in continual demand from many tenants including timber flooring, exposed brick walls, steel trusses and purlins.

Tomlinson says the property occupies a prominent corner position on the western side of Mackelvie Street and the northern side of Crummer Rd with the two street frontages facing northeast and southeast.

The site is a regular rectangle with about 15 metres of frontage to Crummer frontage and 25 metres to Mackelvie.

"Great North Rd is only 230 metres away along Mackelvie St, while Ponsonby Rd is 270 metres away on Crummer Rd," Tomlinson says.

"One street block away on Crummer is the Vinegar Lane commercial precinct which is a mixed residential and commercial initiative that is creating a distinctive new ‘Kiwi Urbanism’.

"Immediately adjacent to that, on Pollen St, is a new Countdown Supermarket and associated office and retail construction project, collectively known as ‘The Cider’ development which is due for opening within a few weeks."

Tomlinson says motorway access to and from the west is good via the Newton Rd ramps, while State Highway One is best accessed via the Spaghetti Junction system about one kilometre away. The Auckland CBD is about two kilometres away.

Tomlinson says the city fringe of Auckland has been a notable precinct for commercial property in the last five years showing excellent improvements in commercial property values.

"However, one suburb has emerged as a clear leader with tenant demand, owner occupiers, investors and residential developers and that is Grey Lynn. There’s a real buzz in this location at the moment."

The property is zoned Mixed Use under the Auckland City District Plan Isthmus Section which became operative in 1999 with the zoning permitting a range of retail, residential and commercial activities - including offices, educational facilities and care centres. Other activities include warehousing, storage, cafes and eating places and entertainment facilities with a floor area of less than 500sq m. A height limit is set at 15 metres with a floor area ratio (FAR) of two-to-one up to a maximum FAR of 4:1.

However under the Proposed Auckland Unitary Plan the property’s Mixed Use designation would allow a height of up to 24.5 metres and permit a mix of compatible residential and non-residential activities.