This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
PALLAS Group’s development arm Fortis has expanded its harbourside holdings, acquiring a site in Sydney’s exclusive Rose Bay that will make way for a new $80 million apartment collection.
Fortis paid $28.5 million for the Spencer Street site, which spans 2,223 sqm and consolidates four separate properties.
With downsizers in mind, Fortis envisions a collection of two and three bedroom apartments with large entertaining areas and outdoor spaces including balconies, terraces and gardens.
It expects to lodge a development application in the middle of the year, to begin construction on the $20 million build in mid-2022, expected to be completed later in the following year.
The proposed development will offer about 2,100 sqm net saleable area.
Alex Lyons and Ric Serrao from Raine & Horne Double Bay negotiated the Spencer Street transactions.
The project will be its third for Fortis in Rose Bay, following The Benson and No. 1 Carlisle.
Fortis closed 2020 with the acquisitions of several eastern suburbs commercial assets. It picked up two sites at the close of the year for a combined $38 million, with plans for a $12 million redevelopment and extension of an Edgecliff site, and refurbishment of a Double Bay building with three floors of high-end, boutique offices along with a retail-focused ground floor.
In October, it bought Double Bay modernist icon Gaden House for $20 million with plans to spend $6.5 million refurbishing the heritage listed retail and office building.
“We are excited about this latest acquisition on Spencer Street, a development that we feel will go on to become a future classic in the area,” Fortis director Charles Mellick said.
“We look forward to working collaboratively with the community to deliver a superior product in a desirable location.
“The living spaces will be designed keeping in mind those looking to downsize without compromising on quality, amenities and location,” he added.
Rose Bay is some seven kilometres from the CBD. The site itself is a short walk away from the new Harris Farm and Bunnings precinct, and is in proximity to Rose Bay beach and ferry wharf, Woollahra golf club, Woollahra Sailing Club, and Lyne Park tennis courts. The ritzy suburb has counted actor Russell Crowe, model and TV star Jodhi Meares, and TV news presenter Jessica Rowe among its residents.
Pallas Group is the parent company of structured property investment arranger Pallas Capital and boutique developer Fortis.
Fortis’ Sydney projects currently under construction or under a planning proposal have a combined end value of circa $1 billion, with a further $800 million pipeline of work in Melbourne. Also among its late-year purchases was a site in Richmond that will be home to a $90 million retail, office and apartment building.
