The property, being 1-7 Cawley Road, Yarraville, Victoria, is an infill redevelopment opportunity close to the Port of Melbourne and in a prime industrial market.
Real estate investment management firm Richmond Bridge facilitated the acquisition, as part of a new advisory mandate to build an industrial property portfolio across major Australian capital cities.
The fund said in a statement that the site is expected to benefit from other nearby projects, including the West Gate Tunnel and the Fishermans Bend Urban Renewal project.
Commenting on future plans for the property, UniSuper senior manager of property Nick Stephens said: “We are very pleased with this acquisition, which we believe when fully redeveloped will be very attractive to industrial and logistics occupiers and an excellent addition to our $6.3 billion unlisted property portfolio.
“We intend to redevelop the property over the medium term into a modern infill logistics estate and look forward to considering additional opportunities to grow our industrial property portfolio further,” he continued.
Pete Wylie, founding partner and CIO of Richmond Bridge, commented that the real estate management firm has the “right team and structure to deliver exceptional service to UniSuper as we assist them to build out a market-leading industrial property portfolio”.
“We are grateful for the trust and backing that UniSuper has put into Richmond Bridge,” Mr Wylie said.
While Richmond Bridge will provide investment and asset advisory services for the Yarraville site, HB&B Property will provide development management services.
“HB&B has a strong track record in the industrial market. This acquisition and the proposed development plan plays well to the strengths of the HB&B business and is an ideal asset to seed our strategic affiliation with Richmond Bridge,” HB&B managing director Kurt Beckhaus explained.
“We also know the UniSuper team very well and are excited to be able to partner with them as they build out a high-quality portfolio,” he concluded.
