If you’ve ever had the feeling that Melbourne wasn’t living up to its full real estate potential, you’re not alone.
PwC Australia and the Property Council of Australia have joined forces to produce a detailed report singling out $600 million in Melbourne land parcels that are effectively primed for re-appropriation. The resulting list of sites encompasses a variety of Melbourne neighbourhoods and highlights under-used (or misused) properties that could be transformed into more lucrative projects such as apartment complexes or recreational facilities. The report, entitled Hidden in Plain Site: Unveiling Opportunities for Investors, features a range of real estate assets—from vacant lots to poorly utilised buildings, car parks, bridges and more. In addition, the report statistics cite Boroondara, Darebin, Manningham and Greater Dandenong as having the greatest number of available properties in the Melbourne area.
One standout address is the St Kilda Triangle, a beloved landmark and home to the well-known Palais Theatre. Located in Port Phillip, the site has been the subject of frequent political debate, and many residents are tired of the bureaucratic backlog that’s left the premium plot in perpetual limbo. “The triangle is a place where governmental failure is a recurring theme,’’ Port Phillip Councillor Dick Gross observed in a recent Herald Sun interview, adding, “The last three councils…have failed to take this wondrous asset from the ignominy of being a car park [and turn it into] a spectacular contributor to the foreshore.”
Still, despite such tantalising opportunity, interested investors would do well to remember the report is more of a hopeful projection than a definitive listing. “The sites identified by the analysis are not identified as surplus or ready for development as such but rather for their potential to be re-used for higher value activity, such as housing,” the report cautions. And, while the current state government encourages urban development, complete renovation of these sites is still very much in the researching stages.
Five (5) identified sites;
1. Epping, Houston Street
Land size: 2.3ha
Value: $4.7m |+
2. Melbourne, 196 Little Collins Street
Land size: 2.3ha
Value: $16m +
3. Camberwell, Riversdale Road
Land size: 4.61ha
Value: $15.8m
4. St Kilda, 10-14 Lower Esplanade
Land Size: 2.58ha
5. Dandenong, 67 Cheltenham Rd
Land size: 3.5ha
Value: $16.4 +
