Cbus Property set to build $400m Melbourne residential development
Industry super fund-backed developer Cbus Property has snapped up a one-hectare site in inner-city suburban Melbourne along the Yarra River and plans to build a $400 million residential development featuring a mix of apartments and townhouses.
Listed for the first time in 44 years, the commercial site at 43-67 River St, Richmond, was bought by Cbus Property for more than $50 million, industry sources revealed, and is predominantly occupied by NHP Electrical Engineering Products.
The developer has appointed SJB Architects to prepare a concept design for the project with 187 one-, two- and three-bedroom homes across two 10- and 12-storey towers, as well as a row of townhouses fronting the Yarra River.
An indoor pool, residents’ co-working space and communal rooftop terrace have also been proposed for the development.
While official design plans have yet to be put into stone, Adrian Pozzo, chief executive at Cbus Property, said the River Street project aimed to meet the market of its Richmond locale in terms of design and price point.
“We are committed to continue to offer the exceptional quality for which we are known, with a product for all demographics – and notably, for right-sizers seeking quality residences,” Pozzo said.
“We believe the current market is not being catered for by existing apartment complexes or projects currently under construction, with a product that is relatively more affordable for many prospective purchasers, while also meeting their expectation for quality.
“Exceptional quality should not necessarily equate to a premium price tag.”
Cbus Property recognised the uniqueness of the site’s elevated position with uninterrupted views of the Yarra River and raised view lines of Melbourne’s CBD, he said.
“We have seized an opportunity to evolve and add value to the existing neighbourhood of residential apartment complexes developed to the north and south of the site in the early 2000s,” Pozzo said.
LAWD’s Lukas Byrns, who brokered the deal with colleagues Paul Callanan and Peter Sagar, said a hectare of land with more than 100 metres of Yarra River frontage just three kilometres from Melbourne’s CBD rarely came to the market.
“Riverside Richmond drew strong interest from developers seeking built-to-sell, built-to-rent and retirement complex opportunities at a very unique site,” Byrns said. “The site represents one of Melbourne’s most significant, large-scale, mixed-use development opportunities.
“Melbourne’s property market is still the most undervalued of all Australian capital cities.”
However, Byrns said initiatives like the state government’s development facilitation process – which surpasses local council approval processes for some projects – were expediting planning approvals and fuelling investor confidence, which was great news not only for the market, but for addressing the housing supply issues and growing the broader economy.
This comes as Cbus Property is still in talks to take over Halo tower – a 55-storey hybrid timber building proposed for the corner of Hunter and Pitt Streets in Sydney’s CBD near the new metro station – from developer Milligan Group.
If the deal is concluded as expected, Cbus Property will have control over one of the few development sites in the centre of Sydney, which can supply new office spaces towards the end of the decade.
Cbus Property declined to comment on the progress of these negotiations.
The super fund is also in the midst of developing a 22-storey tower as part of a $1 billion redevelopment of the site at 111 Castlereagh Street in Sydney’s CBD, expected to be finished in late 2025.
With 98 apartments, Cbus has already received about $66 million for the project’s entire penthouse collection of three residences – The Jones, The MacKellar and The Cambridge.
