AMP flags $400m Garden City revamp

Plans are in motion for a $350 to $400 million redevelopment of Booragoon’s Garden City shopping centre, after a complex multi-million dollar ownership swap between Westfield and AMP Capital.

AMP Capital and Westfield swapped interests in a total of seven centres, handing AMP Capital complete ownership of Garden City Booragoon, Pacific Fair on the Gold Coast and Sydney’s Macquarie Centre.

Westfield has taken full ownership of Garden City Mt Gravatt in Brisbane and Casey Central in Victoria, while Sydney's Warringah Mall and Victoria's Knox Shopping Centre remain joint ventures between the two companies, but with altered ownership levels.

The deal will also lead to the immediate commencement of a $390 million redevelopment of Sydney's Macquarie shopping centre and planning for $580 million in work on the Gold Coast's Pacific Fair.

Three more shopping centres remain jointly owned by both companies.

AMP Capital outlayed about $315 million net in the deals.

It has also attracted $872 million in funds from the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and a subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority to assist its development of the Macquarie Centre and Pacific Fair.

Westfield Group received proceeds of about $200 million from the deal, and Westfield Retail Trust, which focusses solely on property investment, received proceeds of about $180 million.

AMP Capital said planning was underway for a proposed redevelopment at Garden City Booragoon, which could be worth up to $400 million.

A 2006 proposal for the expansion of the centre called for its existing 67,939 square metres of lettable space to grow to 85,959sqm, with the creation of a Main Street area along the internal road between Davy Street and Almondbury Road.

AMP has acquired the final 25 per cent stake in Garden City for $227.8 million, valuing the centre at around $911 million.

AMP Capital property director Andrew Bird said the Booragoon centre had the second highest turnover per square metre for specialties for any regional shopping centre in Australia.

“Perth is the fastest growing capital city in Australia, and the centre has been boosted by the introduction of Sunday trading and the addition of Western Australia’s largest Apple store,” Mr Bird said.

The deal follows a flurry of shipping centre transactions earlier this year, the latest being the $80 million sale of Spearwood’s Phoenix Shopping Centre in August.

Also in August, Beechboro’s Altone Park shopping centre was sold by Centro Property Group to a Singaporean investor for $16 million.

Centro’s other sales this year include a 50 per cent interest in three of its largest shopping centres, including Galleria in Morley.

Perth-based investment company Perron Group paid $690.4 million for its interest in the three centres.

Other Perth sales this year include Wanneroo Central, which sold to the Charter Hall Retail Partnership for $70 million.

This was one of three sales, along with Stirling Central and Carramar Village, handled by CBRE.

The sales, however, will likely be exceeded by the sale of Westfield Innaloo, which has been on the market since April. 

There was no mention of the status of the Karrinyup shopping centre, which Westfield is looking to acquire outright.

Westfield owns a 33 per cent stake in Karrinyup and is looking to buy out its partner, UniSuper. A dispute between the parties is due to be adjudicated by the High Court later this year.