Australian Open popularity puts a spotlight on CORA sport and wellness precinct
Fresh from another record-breaking Australian Open that drew more than 1.2 million fans through Melbourne Park this summer, Victoria continues to strengthen its status as a major sporting destination. Now, a brand-new sports and wellness precinct, recently listed for sale, is cementing that status even more.
CORA (Cape Otway Road, Australia) on Victoria’s Surf Coast is 15,000 square metres of built form across five integrated precincts spanning sport and education facilities, accommodation, retail and tourism uses, conservation areas and regenerative agriculture initiatives.
It has attracted a globally recognised anchor tenant, Mouratoglou Tennis Academy, helmed by French tennis coach Patrick Mouratoglou. This partnership will see the development incorporate a racquet club with up to 48 courts for tennis, padel, and pickleball, along with high-performance training facilities, educational programs, and residential accommodation.
The approximately 190-hectare site is priced at around $50 million. It has been approved under a Comprehensive Development Zone, steered by architect Daryl Pelchen and Olivia Tipler, who bought the Modewarre farmland in 2003. About 90 hectares are available for development, while the remaining 100 hectares will be devoted to conservation.
Positioned around 80 minutes from Melbourne CBD and Melbourne Airport, CORA sits within one of Victoria’s fastest-growing regional corridors, and more than $17 million has already been invested into enabling works, planning and design over the past eight years, including state and federal government contributions, with no further public consultation required ahead of delivery. The site is also exempt from the windfall gains tax, providing additional certainty for prospective development partners.
The project, offered through an international expressions-of-interest campaign, signals the promise of major growth in the state’s regional areas.
“The proximity to the Surf Coast and Melbourne positions CORA for year‑round utilisation and high‑value visitation,” said Gabe Lindquist, director, alternatives at Cushman & Wakefield.
“This isn’t just a project; it’s a platform for broader regional growth. Investors have the chance to shape something that will influence the region for decades and with land purchase costs already negotiated under below‑market option agreements, the economics of the opportunity are compelling”.
Internationally, large-scale sport and education precincts such as IMG Academy in Florida and Aspire Zone in Doha have demonstrated the long-term economic potential of integrated sports and accommodation precincts that attract athletes, students, and sport-focused tourism year-round.
