Buyer of East Auckland hub to retain local link

One of the country’s longest-established shopping centres has been sold to Singapore-based investors for $96 million.

Pakuranga Plaza has been bought by Stanley Tan, chief executive of Global Yellow Pages and Pang Yoke Min of Southeast Asian investment group GYP Properties, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Global Yellow Pages, with strong ties to New Zealand.

The popular East Auckland shopping centre was sold by way of private treaty through Bayleys Real Estate. It occupies a high-profile site of just under four hectares, on the corner of arterial routes Ti Rakau Drive and Pakuranga Rd and has served customers since it first opened in 1965.

Vendors Ross and Dallas Pendergrast of Ladstone Holdings have undertaken extensive renovations over the past 18 months and repositioned the centre as a community-oriented retail and business hub led by flagship retailers Farmers, The Warehouse and Countdown.

Ladstone Holdings chief executive Kim Bennett says the repositioning came at the culmination of a lengthy public engagement process geared at tailoring the plaza according to feedback from passionate locals.

The new owners have expressed a commitment to preserving and building upon the vendors’ vision for the plaza to serve as a shopping centre that identifies strongly with the Pakuranga and Howick communities.

“There are a multitude of opportunities for the future development of the site; including the possibility of hotels, residential accommodation, office blocks and on-site entertainment to make Pakuranga Plaza a one-stop destination,” Mr Tan says.

Under the management of Bayleys Property Services, the Pakuranga Plaza will continue to operate within the existing framework of dedicated and experienced local staff.

Alongside the appeal of steady cashflow and a body of existing tenants that includes international, national and local retailers, Pakuranga Plaza lies in an area earmarked for future development.

David Bayley, executive director of Bayleys Real Estate, says the level of interest in the property is reflective of its potential to accrue value naturally, with the growth in population and ease of access given improvements in local transport infrastructure.

“However, there is also scope to capitalise on the existing plaza by adding residential accommodation in line with zoning changes included in the proposed Auckland Unitary Plan,” Mr Bayley says.

Auckland Council has identified the site for more intensive residential development under a mixed-use town centre zoning.

The proposed zoning change permits the construction of residential buildings of up to 12 storeys and a wider range of leisure facilities.

Ladstone Holdings has already commissioned concept plans to explore the possibility of a staged development comprised of five 10- 12 storey apartment buildings above the existing mall and on the northeastern corner of the site.

The concept provides for up to 1000 apartments and is being considered by Mr Tan and his associates to cater for substantial population growth over the next decade.

Maryke Penman writes for Bayleys Real Estate