Water Corp eyes sale of big Leederville site

A SIGNIFICANT parcel of inner-city land is being put up for sale by the Water Corporation as part of big changes taking place on the north-west fringe of the central city.

The 4.1-hectare development site surrounding the Water Corporation’s John Tonkin headquarters, bounded by Newcastle Street, Loftus Street and the Mitchell Freeway in Leederville, has been advertised for acquisition and development by expressions of interest closing on May 2 via agent Knight Frank.

The potential development of the site has been well known for some years as the Water Corporation looked at constructing several new buildings, as well as an extension of its head office, which occupies the site.

The site is just part of massive changes for the area as outlined in WA Business News in July. The Leederville Master Plan includes the potential for several high-rise developments along Leederville Parade overlooking the freeway. These include apartments and possibly a hotel.

But Leederville is not acting alone. Across the freeway divide, the Town of Cambridge is looking to inject life into its eastern quarter, bounded by the freeway and the Perth-Fremantle railway line. 

Already sizeable developments are under way on properties at the eastern edge of this area but the town wants more commercial development further back towards the railway station and is also examining ways to improve the connection with Leederville across the freeway.

The Water Corp is understood to have gained approval for a 9,700-square metre, 5-star Green Star extension of the John Tonkin Water Centre. It is expected this will allow it to consolidate its headquarters workforce into one location.

It was previously proposed that the other buildings would occupy the Newcastle Street frontage, including one as high as 18 storeys but Knight Frank said that under the Leederville Master Plan the site could incorporate a building of up to 24 storeys, as well as creating an office park and master-planned residential community.

Knight Frank confirmed that development approval had also been received conditionally for six multi-storey buildings, including 240 residential units, more than 80,000sqm of office space, 1540sqm of retail, 927sqm for restaurants and a childcare centre, as detailed at proposal level in WA Business News.

Knight Frank managing director John Corbett said the low vacancy rates in the Perth CBD made the office component alone very appealing, but the site provided much more in terms of an integrated, mixed-use, urban renewal project.