Construction on the CBD’s biggest retail development, at 100 St Georges Terrace, will begin in January next year.
Construction on the CBD’s biggest retail development, at 100 St Georges Terrace, will begin in January next year.
Spanning three levels with frontages to St Georges Terrace and Hay Street, the $140 million retail development will also underpin an office tower to be built on top of the retail component.
The development, owned by the Pivot Group and Industry Superannu-ation Property Trust Pty Ltd, has secured Woolworths as an anchor tenant with a 20-year lease for nearly 2,500 metres, making it the biggest CBD supermarket in Perth.
Pivot chairman Peter Laurance has said that he wishes to attract big-name retailers to the development, and that the joint venture partners were actively in the market securing upmarket retailers currently without a presence in Perth.
“Century City will have a number of upmarket fashion and specialist goods outlets offering their full ranges,” Mr Laurance told WA Business News.
“Despite our strong economy, for some time Perth has lacked a wide range of retail facilities other big cities enjoy.
“National retailers know that in Perth you must be in the right location in the right part of the Hay Street mall, and we have been approached by big name retailers who have wanted to come to Perth for some time, but have been unable to find the right location.”
Mr Laurance told a recent Property Council lunch that property was all about location, and that the Toys R Us site, in the central part of the mall, was the place to be for retail.
“The ‘ant track’ of Perth is going to walk through here,” he said.
An anchor tenant is yet to be secured for the office component of the Pivot and ISPT development, but Mr Laurence has expressed confi-dence that a tenant will be secured for the 18-storey tower in the near future.
In July, rents being asked for an anchor tenant were $365 per square metre.
Perth is currently in the unique position of having very strong markets for both retail and office, and several office developments are proposed for Perth with retail components. And competition for tenants is hot.
The developments are: Pivot and ISPT’s 100 St Georges Terrace; Luke Saraceni’s Raine Square; Multiplex and the Griffin Group’s City Square; and 140 William Street, which is to be sold by LandCorp.
Hawaiian Management Group owns the Bishops See site with Multiplex, but is yet to finalise development plans.
