Property experts, Leedwell has successfully leased a retail development in the heart of the Chirnside Park Activity Centre on behalf of Troon Group in a joint venture with MaxCap.
Located at 266 Maroondah Highway, the Chirnside Park site had previously been earmarked for a Masters Home Improvement Centre and was then acquired by Kaufland for a supermarket before they exited the Australian market. The joint venture acquired the site from Kaufland and identified an opportunity to develop a Large Format Retail (LFR) centre, capitalising on the strength of the LFR market and taking advantage of the flexible commercial 1 zoning.
The property, currently under construction was secured as an infill greenfield development site during the COVID-19 pandemic and represents approximately 12,000m2 of retail floor space on a 3.9Ha site, which is due for completion in October 2022.
Chris Parry of Leedwell, the leasing agent for the project said, “Large format retail vacancy rates during the leasing campaign were the lowest they have been since 2009. Demand for space was strong and we have been able to secure 100% of the spaces before completion of the construction.”
The property at 266 Maroondah Highway, Chirnside Park sits on a 3.9Ha site – due for completion in October 2022
The development comprises eight large format retail boxes, four speciality tenancies and three drive-through boxes, adjoining an existing Dan Murphy’s.
Retailers who have committed to the development include Baby Bunting, Harris Scarfe Home, Fantastic Furniture, Taco Bell, KFC and McDonald’s with more to be announced.
Nick Segran from Leedwell said, “Retail sales growth has continued to climb during our leasing campaign, particularly in household goods. We think that this will continue as consumers remain upbeat around the outlook for wage growth and still have an exceptionally high household savings which remains very elevated at 12.3%.”
Along with neighbourhood centres, LFR has been one of the most resilient retail asset classes through this pandemic. The inability to travel and the need to work from home have been significant contributors to large format retail sales which have resulted in aggressive expansion from retailers.
