This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
ONE Australia’s largest unlisted property fund managers, ISPT, has secured Australian Unity to anchor a new $110 million office tower in Melbourne’s CBD.
Already joint owners of Waurn Ponds shopping centre, ISPT will this month start work on the 271 Spring St building after Australian Unity precommitted to 100% of the project.
Australian Unity has agreed to a 15-year term for 15,600 sqm of the 16-level office building. Completion is anticipated in mid 2019.
ISPT CEO Daryl Browning said the development of 271 Spring St will complete one of Melbourne’s most historic precincts with the careful integration of a new boutique office tower.
The new building will complement ISPT’s ownership of the precinct bounded by Spring, Little Lonsdale and Lonsdale Sts, and with The Urban Workshop at 50 Lonsdale St – also developed and owned by ISPT. The precinct houses the Casselden office building, purchased by ISPT in 1999 and recently refurbished with a sustainable focus.
“John Wardle Architects, collaborating with heritage architect Bruce Trethowan, carefully considered the site context to develop a scheme which embraces and celebrates the heritage values of the site, while providing an elegant and sophisticated tower.
“We’re pleased to secure Australian Unity, a group we already enjoy strong ties with, to underpin the project. This will be a prized addition to our Melbourne portfolio and reinforces our capacity to form strong partnerships to help deliver our growth agenda through a strategic mix of quality developments and acquisitions,” Browning said.
Australian Unity CEO Rohan Mead said the prime location and the quality of the new building’s design were both critical factors in Australian Unity’s commitment to
the project.
“Our new headquarters will be an appropriate new home for Australian Unity, ensuring we can continue to meet the needs of our almost one million customers across Australia and also continue our long historical association with Melbourne.
“The Spring St location will be more financially efficient for our company and at the same time allow us to convert our existing property holdings in South Melbourne into a modern retirement community,” Mead said.
Australian Property Journal
