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One of the Whangarei area’s most significant land holdings, a 4.38ha freehold waterfront industrial property 3km southeast of the Whangarei CBD, has been placed on the market for sale.

The site at 4 Fraser St, which includes an 800 tonne slipway and two large vessel refit and new build facilities, is being marketed by Tim Lichtenstein and Peter Herdson of Colliers International as part of the agency’s latest National Portfolio magazine.

The property is offered partially occupied with holding income and is for sale by tender closing at 4pm on Thursday November 8. It presents an opportunity to add value through redevelopment and proactive lease management, Lichtenstein says.

“This is a unique chance to invest in a large industrial land holding, on the riverfront and in close proximity to the Whangarei CBD. The size, zoning and layout of the site offer significant future opportunities to owner occupiers, investors or developers.”

The most significant buildings on the heavy industrial-zoned site are a large, double-height construction building and a purpose-built, humidity-controlled refit shed. These facilities, together with the large-capacity slipway and the waterfront location, make the property ideal for marine industry-related occupiers, Herdson says.

“This property offers the opportunity to set up a large vessel service and refit facility or a boatbuilding yard, restoring the facility to its full potential, creating jobs and eventually boosting industrial activity in the local economy. The existing buildings are well set up for several trades to work on vessels at a time, and could accommodate working boats such as ferries and trawlers as well as large leisure yachts.”

Property

A number of workshop and office buildings making up a total floor area of 12,868sq m are on site, some of which are leased to predominantly marine industry-related tenants on medium-term and casual leases. A floating pontoon is also included and recent dredging allows boats with a draught of up to 4.2m to access the slipway, which can haul out large vessels of up to 800 tonnes. Additional vacant land provides space for possible further development in the future.

Shed A, the largest building, is a purpose built, seven-bay boat construction building of 105 metres long by 35 metres deep, located parallel to the slipway. It provides 6171sq m of floor area across a substantial, high stud open workshop and a three storey mezzanine, partitioned for offices and workshops.

Shed B adjoins the western end of Shed A and provides 1400sq m of floor area. It has a stud height of 8.3m and contains a five-tonne gantry crane.

The humidity-controlled refit/boat building facility, known as The Dome, has a 17m high stud and is reputed to be one of the largest refit sheds in New Zealand. The 1854sq m building was originally constructed as a floating structure and was relocated onto the end of the slipway in 1999. The building is in excellent condition and also provides smaller workshop, office and storage areas. The controlled humidity makes it ideal for boat painting.

Six other buildings provide office, workshop and amenities spaces ranging from 320sq m to 820sq m in size.

Location

One of the property’s key features is its accessibility, Lichtenstein says. “The site benefits from transport access via both Fraser St and Port Rd, which is the main arterial road link between the port and central Whangarei.”

State Highway One is approximately 5km to the east of the property, providing access to Auckland to the south.

The property is located in an established industrial area, among surrounding properties which include ship repair and boat building, as well as fertiliser works, concrete plants, asphalt batching activities and various other medium to light industrial activities.

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