Major private developer Winten Property Group and Australand jointly paid $30 million for the Dick Smith site at Macquarie Park in Sydney.
The 1.63 hectare site is located in north-western Sydney and once served as the headquarters of Dick Smith, the company vacated in 2001.
The existing buildings are leased by MAN Diesel, the State Rail Authority and other tenants.
The site is located on the corner of Lane Cove Rd and Waterloo Rd at Macquarie Park.
The JV partners have purchased the site as an investment property, however, there are no plans to immediately develop the prominent property.
The JV partners said the site is recognised as one of Macquarie Park’s gateway sites with expectations that under current planning proposals being considered by Lane Cove Council, it may yield over 40,000 sqm of office accommodation in three buildings.
“The acquisition formed part of the group’s commitment to maintaining the growth of its burgeoning investment portfolio while ensuring a pipeline of future development landbanks,” Australand’s executive general manager of commercial and industrial John Thomas said.
Recent changes to the Local Environment Plan for the region had removed a requirement for development to be R&D based, meaning the area would be more attractive to traditional commercial tenants.
The changes also raise the building height limit from five storeys to 10 storeys.
Winten development director Anthony Otto said that with better rail and road links in the area, it would be a matter of time before big-name commercial tenants moved into Macquarie Park.
“When you consider the changes that have occurred with the LEP, Macquarie Park is likely to have a very different looking skyline in the next few years,” Otto said.
By Adam Parsons
