Prime North Sydney Site Tipped to Top $20m

Aruma, a leading disability service provider, has put its North Sydney head office site up for sale.

The organisation says they will reinvest the proceeds of the sale of the 10,170sq m Frenchs Forest property to further support people with a disability.

Colliers will broker the sale and say the site is expected to fetch more than $20 million.

Aruma’s acting chief operating officer Tiffany Roxburgh said the organisation was focused on creating purpose-designed spaces that meet the diverse needs of customers and staff.

“It is not surprising that after almost 60 years at Belrose, we have outgrown the site and the buildings are no longer fit for purpose,” Roxburgh said.

“We want to ensure we’re investing the funds from the sale back into options that best support our customers and staff.”

Roxburgh said Aruma would continue to have a presence on Sydney’s northern beaches.

The property sits within an R2 low density residential zone with an 8.5m height limit. Colliers say it has dual street frontages, extensive boundaries, and a gentle slope from north to south with the opportunity for “extensive district and Sydney CBD views.”

“Placed on an incredibly rare, large and expansive residential land holding, this site sits in a peaceful residential suburban setting on Sydney’s renowned northern beaches, and provides a fantastic opportunity to create a development that fits in with the unique Frenchs Forest landscape and the local community,” Colliers’ Henry Burke said.

Eugene White, also from Colliers, said the property was opposite the recently upgraded Frenchs Forest Showground in an area serviced by “an abundance of retail, cultural and public amenity”.

▲ Aruma says it will reinvest the proceeds of the sale of the Frenchs Forest property to further support people with a disability.

“We expect interest from a range of development groups to be strong, given the demand for residential housing and aged care living on the northern beaches,” he said.

The Belrose site dates back to 1965 when Lionel Watts, the founder of the disability service provider House with No Steps, lobbied the New South Wales government for a land grant in the Belrose area to grow his organisation.

In 2018 House with No Steps came together with another provider, The Tipping Foundation, to form Aruma. Aruma now supports more than 5000 people with a disability in Queensland, NSW, ACT and Victoria.

“Our investment will be supporting people with a disability in New South Wales, providing fit for purpose, modern and tech-enabled spaces for our customers, and for our staff, Roxburgh said.  “We’re fully committed to creating more inclusive and accessible places to work, live and visit.”

The site will be sold through an expression of interest campaign, which will close October 4.