COLLIERS SECURES SUBSTANTIAL BRISBANE LEASING

Colliers International’s Troy Whalan and Simon Beirne negotiated a lease between the national logistics firm and George Websdale of the 67 Bellrick St, Acacia Ridge property’s owners the Heathley Diversified Property Fund.

Whalan says a leasing campaign for the location began earlier this year and the new tenant was found before the previous tenant CEVA Logistics had relocated to its new purpose built premises.

And Property at Heathley director Websdale says the new long term lease to Blue Star reaffirms his organisation’s belief that “good quality industrial properties in established locations will always be attractive to high-quality tenants”.

“To be able to secure a new, longer term leasing commitment from Blue Star with only one month’s downtime between tenants is a fantastic outcome for our investors and a testament to the Colliers Industrial leasing team,” he says.

Whalan says there are a limited amount of occupiers looking for facilities in the size range concerned, but there are also a limited number of large industrial properties available to tenants with those size requirements.

“Blue Star had been in the market looking for a suitable property – or initially a design and construct opportunity – to accommodate its expansion for some time, but had been unable to find the right site in and around the Acacia Ridge area.

“The facility at Bellrick St proved to be the right fit for Blue Star’s requirements, with the circa 4000 sqm of awning being one of the crucial attributes of the property that sealed the deal.

“It’s very rare to find an awning of that size attached to a large warehouse.

“It is beneficial for a transport logistics company in that it allows for loading and unloading of goods undercover.”

He says Blue Star, which is already situated in a facility on Beenleigh Rd in Acacia Ridge, was focused on staying in Brisbane’s south while searching for a new location.

“Acacia Ridge is ideal for transport logistics companies, because it is situated so close to all the main arterials, including Beaudesert Road, the Logan Motorway, the Pacific Motorway, the Gateway Motorway and the Ipswich Motorway.

“The Bellrick St property has ideal access to Beaudesert Rd, which leads to the other main arterials.

“It also neighbours other major companies in the area, including Hastings Deering, Aurizon and SCT.”

While the Acacia Ridge property suited Blue Star’s requirements, it has requested the landlord undertake a number of improvements to the site, including refurbishing the office fit-out and adding additional awning and doors to the warehouse to further improve the undercover functionality of the premises.

Colliers International’s Corporate Solutions team in Queensland has been appointed by Heathley to oversee such changes, with the process to be completed on a tight time frame by the beginning of October.

Colliers International are now seeking tenants for the remaining 678 sqm of space – specifically office space – in the Bellrick St property that hasn’t been leased to Blue Star.

Beirne says Brisbane’s industrial market is travelling along at a healthy pace and is currently one of the strongest sectors in the commercial property space.

“There have been a limited number of leasing transactions for facilities of 10,000 sqm and above, but that is largely due to the lack of availability of stock – hence there is still a very low vacancy rate in this sector of the market.

“There have only been a handful of deals of a similar size to the Blue Star lease in recent times and Colliers International has been involved in negotiating all of them, including a lease CEVA Logistics has taken on for a 40,000 sqm premises in Berrinba following its departure from the Acacia Ridge property and a lease car manufacturer Isuzu has taken on for a 15,000 sqm speculative facility in Richlands.

“Over the past year Colliers International has now negotiated major leasing deals for more than 70,000 sqm of space,” he says.
Blue Star will pay a blended leasing rate of $81 per sqm for 13,799 sqm of space in the 14,477 sqm facility, which comprises 1,627 sqm of office space, 9,000 sqm of warehouse space, 3,850 sqm of awning, 5000 sqm of hardstand area and 50 car parks on a 24,600 sqm site.