This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
SENTINEL Property Group sees a bright future in Cairns, acquiring a fully leased four-level commercial building for $8.5 million for its second play in the regional city in 18 months.
The 139 Grafton Street property has a total net lettable area of 2,453 sqm and is leased to Queensland Health on a new five-year deal ending in 2022, and a medical office.
It joins the DFO Cairns retail complex as Sentinel’s assets in the regional centre, and will become the sixth property for the Sentinel Regional Office Trust.
The trust has acquired more than $188 million of properties across Australia since October, and has a current net distribution of 9.50%. Its other properties comprise office buildings in Darwin and Casuarina in the Nothern Territory; Brisbane’s CBD fringe; and Port Macquarie and Newcastle in New South Wales.
Sentinel’s managing director, Warren Ebert, said the group has strong confidence in the North Queensland economy and its future growth prospects.
“Cairns is a market that we know very well and has been a major focus for us in successfully turning around the DFO Cairns centre over the past year through continual improvements and investment,” Ebert said.
“We see a lot of upside in the Cairns market on the back of its resurgent tourism sector and more than $20 billion of planned infrastructure and development projects that will drive further tourism and economic growth,” he added.
Key projects include the expansion of Cairns Airport, and works at the Port of Cairns, the Ella Bay Integrated Resort Development, Rio Tinto’s Amrun Bauxite Project, the new Cairns Performing Arts Centre and Cairns Aquarium & Reef Research Centre.
Ebert said the trust has a number of further regional office acquisitions in the pipeline.
Across central and northern Queensland, Sentinel Property Group’s portfolio includes a freestanding Big W in Atheron, a neighbourhood shopping centre and industrial property in Townsville, the Port of Airlie Maritime Terminal at Airlie Beach, two neighbourhood shopping centres in Emerald and seven retail, industrial, office and landholdings in Mackay.
Australian Property Journal
