Charter Hall Gets Green Light for $200 Million Office Tower

The Charter Hall Office Trust has received development approval from the Victorian government for a new 22-storey office tower at 140 Lonsdale Street in Melbourne’s CBD.

The new tower adjoins the Charter Hall Office Trust-owned 150 Lonsdale Street property and the Charter Hall Prime Office Fund’s current $600 million Wesley Place development.

The DA approved office tower, which will have an on-completion value of $200 million will see Charter Hall’s total investment in the Wesley Place precinct, including the properties at 130, 140 and 150 Lonsdale Street rise to $1 billion.

To be constructed on the site to the north of the existing CHOT-owned 150 Lonsdale Street building, and adjoining the Wesley Place tower currently under construction, the new A-Grade Office Tower will comprise 16,500 square metres of office space over 22-storeys and will mostly retain the existing above ground carpark providing approximately 380 car spaces.

The Wesley Place project currently under construction comprises a new technology enabled premium grade tower with 58,000 square metres of vertical campus style office and premium retail space across 35 floors.

[Related reading: Charter Hall Commences Construction on Wesley Place with 50% Leasing Pre-Commitments]

“We are proud to collaborate with the Victorian Government and Melbourne City Council who share our vision in the redevelopment of this iconic site,” Charter Hall’s Office chief executive Adrian Taylor said.

“The size and scale of our $9.5 billion office portfolio allows us to originate projects organically to create institutional quality investment opportunities in the office sector, adding significant value and enhanced income yield and total returns for our managed funds.”

One of the most tightly held office precincts in Melbourne’s CBD, the site located at Wesley Upper Lonsdale is in the heart of Melbourne’s entertainment and cultural precinct and is fast becoming the preferred location for major financial services organisations in Melbourne’s CBD.

Superannuation funds TelstraSuper and Cbus Super have previously announced they will be locating their head offices at Wesley Place joining Wesley Mission Victoria and Uniting Church in Australia who are also committing to long term leases.

Targeting a 5 Star Green Star and 5 Star NABERS ratings, the new development is planned to finish in line with the greater Wesley Precinct in the first half of 2020.