Official Newsletter of Hamton Property Group

NEWS
Tenant secured for the Rooftop cinema at Society South Yarra

We Are Hunter, operator of the Rooftop Cinema at Curtain House in Swanston Street, Melbourne, have signed a heads of agreement with Hamton to run the roof top cinema and bar on level 10 at Society. Barrie Barton, director of We Are Hunter, is extremely excited about working with Hamton on Society. Barrie says “What we have started with Rooftop Cinema in Melbourne’s CBD has really captured the imagination of the city crowd - We’ve built one of the most beautiful cinema experiences in the world and the chance to do that again in a different part of the city for a new audience is very exciting in its own right.”

There are a number of other retail opportunities available at Society. Hamton are currently seeking tenants and/or owner occupiers to operate ground floor and level 10 food and beverage and commercial spaces. An ‘Expression of Interest’ campaign is currently underway which is seeking operators that share the vision of Society’s exciting vertical village and add to the enthusiasm already created by the successful sale of all of the project’s apartments. All outlets are expected to be fully operational by February 2010. For further information on the retail opportunities contact Peter Lane on 0407 387 007 or click here to visit the Society website.

Exciting new acquistion in Abbotsford

Hamton, with joint venture partner ISPT, has recently purchased a 1.77ha site on Victoria Street in Abbotsford. The site comprises three separately titled office buildings. The plan is to eventually on-sell 675 Victoria Street, a four level modern office building with Yarra frontage which is tenanted until 2015. The remaining 1.42ha of the site (677-679 Victoria St) will be redeveloped into a vibrant $200m river front residential precinct. Hamton are delighted to have the opportunity to redevelop such a prime inner city site with strong holding income, Yarra River frontage on two sides, a tram super-stop at its front door running the 4km journey into the city and the Victoria Gardens Shopping Centre across the road. Hamton is currently in planning on the project with marketing likely to commence with a registration of interest campaign early in 2010. Click here to view media coverage of the acquisition.

Rezoning of Joseph Road Footscray complete

Over the past five years we have been working on the rezoning of the Joseph Road precinct in Footscray. Containing over twenty discrete parcels of land over fifteen hectares in area, each under separate ownership, Joseph Road is located on the Maribyrnong River, just 5 kilometres from the City.

The Joseph Road precinct, formerly zoned Industrial has in the past month been rezoned to Priority Development Zone. Under this zoning, the Joseph Road precinct, if fully developed, will be one of Melbourne’s most significant urban renewal projects, containing thousands of new homes, shops and offices. We would like to thank the Joseph Road team for their help in driving the rezoning, including the State Government, the Priority Development Panel, the Maribyrnong Council, peckvonhartle, SJB Planning and a raft of other very talented consultants and stakeholders.

Completion of MGV Malvern

Construction is now complete at MGV and settlement has occurred for all 67 apartments. The concept of creating contrasts with facade treatments has produced the effect we envisaged almost 5 years ago, of four very individual and tasteful buildings. We believe MGV fits very comfortably within the grain of the existing housing fabric in Malvern and provides an outstanding model for low rise, low impact development in Melbourne’s middle ring suburbs.

Click here to view images of MGV.

Completion of The Rathdowne Carlton

Construction of The Rathdowne was completed in May and looks superb. Owners and tenants have moved into the 14 luxurious apartments and are already indulging in the Carlton lifestyle. The Rathdowne is wonderfully located directly across from the World Heritage Listed Royal Exhibition Building and the Carlton gardens just on the edge of the city.

This development incorporated a refurbishment of an Edwardian heritage building and a striking modern addition exemplifying contemporary architecture. The Rathdowne represents innovative, sophisticated and modern design that typifies a successful marriage of old and new. From the outside, The Rathdowne’s timeless Edwardian façade has retained its period splendour, whilst now having been beautifully updated for modern living. A contemporary extension, designed by acclaimed architects SJB, sits fully integrated with the original building, and perfectly complements the 1907 structure.

Hamton purchased the building in 2005 and with it came a rich history. The site was originally the home of Sir Redmond Barry (1813 - 1880), the highly respected Supreme Court Judge and first Chancellor of the University of Melbourne. In 1907, the current building was constructed and was known as the John Robertson Nurses Home, which accommodated nurses for over fifty years. It then became St Nicholas’ Hospital (1963), which operated as a live-in facility for children. Over the years, the building has been proudly and meticulously preserved.

Hamton, along with Built (Project Builder) and our valued consultants, including SJB Architects, are proud to have transformed 125-139 Rathdowne Street into a place that people can once again reside and enjoy the charm of Carlton and its surrounds. 

Click here to view images of The Rathdowne.

Rize and Baymarque nearing complete

Rize townhouses in Richmond and Baymarque townhouses in Brighton are all nearing construction completion and look fabulous. Settlements have commenced at Rize and will continue through to September and at Baymarque settlements will occur in September. Click here to view the latest construction updates.

If you are a purchaser in any of these developments and are looking to lease your property, now is the time to start thinking about the process of securing a high quality tenant at a premium rental.  Nicole at Hamton Real Estate Services has commenced the process of reviewing all rental estimates for each apartment to ensure they are in line with current market trends.

Investors will be receiving an information booklet in the coming months detailing the leasing process. Furthermore marketing plans will be developed over the coming months to ensure maximum exposure for your investment resulting in securing a high quality tenant for a maximum return for your investment.

Please do not hesitate to contact Nicole Wiseman from Hamton Real Estate Services should you wish to discuss this further. Phone: 03 9522 8428 or Email: nicole@hamton.com.au

INITIATIVES
Helping to Provide a FareShare

It may not be a name that is familiar to you... in fact, in many ways we hope Fareshare is an organisation that you never need to get to know! However, with Hamton staff volunteering their time to assist them in their work, the staff at Hamton can vouch first hand for the amazing job that the dedicated team at Fareshare do.

Based in Abbotsford, Fareshare takes unwanted food that would otherwise go to waste, and prepares nutritious meals for those who are struggling to provide for themselves. This food could be bread from a bakery that wasn’t sold on the day, fruit and vegetables that is blemished but perfectly edible, offcuts from a butcher or odd shaped cheese...all healthy materials that would otherwise end up in landfill.

In fact, with the help of the Hamton team, Fareshare are regularly producing a total of around 1200 meals on the days we help out. These meals are then provided to a number of organisations who work directly with the needy in the community, like St. Vincent De Paul Society, the Salvation Army and others, to assist those most in need.

Not only does this organisation play a vital role in helping families in need around Melbourne, but it also ensures that food that would otherwise go to waste is put to good use, a real win/win situation all round.

If you would like to know more about Fareshare, or contribute to this largely unsung organisation, you can find more information at www.fareshare.org.au.

Society's Green Travel Club

As part of creating environmentally sustainable projects, Society South Yarra (and all forthcoming Hamton projects) is governed by a Green Travel Plan (GTP). The GTP guides residents in minimising their reliance on private vehicle use by promoting and providing for a range of alternatives such as ride sharing, short term car rental, public transport use, walking and cycling. To enact our GTP Hamton have established a Green Travel Club (GTC).

With free membership, Society residents will have access to ten bicycles which Society will purchase. The bicycles will be located within the 81 bike parks which exist at Society and booking will be via the building intranet. Society will also look to rent these bicycles out to the general public, adding to the community feel at Society.

Hamton is also finalising a car share arrangement which will make a car available to building residents. This car will be located in the street or the building basement and will allow residents to drive a car without owning one, for just a small annual fee plus hourly rental rate.

These plans will reduce the cost of living at Society and will reduce environmental impacts. Hamton intends to roll out its Green Travel Club into all its forthcoming projects.