The move, performed over the Cup Day weekend, involved shifting from one Investa-owned building at 567 Collins Street to another at No.120.
Corrs boss Gavin MacLaren is understood to have been champing at the bit to get the law firm back to the top end of Collins.
While the firm had been toying with the top floors of Cbus Property’s new $1 billion tower at 435 Bourke Street, where Baker McKenzie will set up shop, it jumped at the Paris end.
Corrs has moved to 120 Collins Street. Its courtyard garden recently won a prize. Credit: Peter Bennetts
“Our move to 120 Collins reflects our ongoing commitment to creating a workplace that meets the needs of our people, our clients and our guests,” MacLaren said.
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Indeed, he will now be within strolling distance of the Melbourne Club in the next block.
Corrs was an anchor tenant at No.567 when it was completed in 2015, one of the biggest new premium offices to be built in 25 years.
It was part of a move west by the corporate sector, dragged closer to Docklands by the towers emerging down the hill from Southern Cross station.
Corrs’ new headquarters, designed by architectural firm Bates Smart, will include private offices for top partners. No more working out of a meeting room for MacLaren.
The move comes as GPT reached structural completion at 51 Flinders Lane last week amid talk of a new tenant ready to sign on the dotted line and take the pre-leased space past 30 per cent.
And in other CBD news, Sydney-based property firm Fortis, a subsidiary of Pallas Capital, has made its first move into Melbourne’s CBD, paying $60.35 million for 470 Collins Street in the mid-town precinct.
A company connected with property investor-developer and flower grower Sam Suleman was the vendor. It paid $30.55 million for the 16-level building in 2011.
470 Collins Street, Melbourne CBD.
The mortgagee sale, under instructions by KordaMentha, was negotiated by Cushman & Wakefield’s Daniel Wolman, Oliver Hay, Leon Ma and CBRE’s Nick Peden, Jamus Campbell and Scott McGlone.
Fashion expands
In more signs of a CBD renaissance, home-grown fashion label Gorman, is expanding its footprint on Swanston Street, on the corner of Little Collins Street.
The colourful retailer has re-signed its shops at 137 Swanston Street and picked up the shop next door, taking its space to 459 square metres.
The five-year lease, with a five-year option, was negotiated by Fitzroy’s James Lockwood and Franklin Gikas, at $641,000 a year.
Gorman is expanding into shop 3 at 137 Swanston Street.
“Gorman were in shops 1 and 2 of 137 Swanston Street and jumped on the opportunity to secure shop 3,” Lockwood said.
“This part of the CBD draws constant pedestrian traffic from workers, residents and tourists across all hours,” he said.
Swanston Street vacancies have fallen to 2.6 per cent, according to Fitzroys’ latest Walk the CBD report, with the CBD tightening to 6.1 per cent from 8 per cent.
On the corner of Bourke and Swanston, Japanese retailer Muji has announced a new three-storey flagship store at ISPT’s Midtown Mall starting in 2027 and TK Maxx has opened a new flagship store at 235 Bourke Street.
The move follows Mecca’s wildly successful opening on the Mall along with its hotel neighbours and The Walk Arcade which is anchored by JD Sports.
Court battle
Receivers have been appointed to sell a CBD fringe gateway building on busy Kings Way after a family’s stoush over a property portfolio ended up in court.
The three-level building at 164-180 Kings Way and 14 York Street, leased to Melbourne City Mission, is on a 3422-square-metre site opposite the Mercedes-Benz showroom.
A gateway site: 164-180 Kings Way, South Melbourne.
Court documents show Pitcher Partners was appointed to oversee the sale of a property portfolio accrued by the late Con Siamidis after infighting between family members stalled payments on a $16.87 million NAB loan.
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The property was “in jeopardy of sale by the mortgagees,” according to a Supreme Court judgement.
JLL’s Jesse Radisich, Josh Rutman, and Mingxuan Li are handling the campaign under instruction from Australian Professionals Property Service and Pitcher Partners.
City Mission has two years remaining on its lease. The charity has occupied the buildings since 2012 and pays about $1.35 million a year in rent. The prominent billboard above brings the net rent to about $1.5 million.
While, agents declined to provide a price guide, other sources suggest it should fetch between $20 million and $22 million. The tenant’s charity status means the building is currently free of land tax but that could change in 2027 if MCM moves out.
The property has had a chequered history. Records show Siamidis Properties paid $2 million for it in 1993 to Bondi Investments, an entity associated with the failed State Bank of South Australia.
A string of buildings in East Brunswick owned by Siamidis is also on the market. Andrew Greenway and Alex Ham from Gross Waddell ICR are marketing 635-637 Lygon Street, East Brunswick, and are expecting about $3.5 million.
Fitzroys’ Chris Kombi and Shane Mills are running the campaign for 479-481 and 483-485 Lygon Street. Those properties are for sale separately or together and should fetch about $5 million in total.
The court documents indicate there is another property to come from the Siamidis portfolio – the old Konstantines restaurant at 169-173 St Georges Road, North Fitzroy, which has been shuttered for nearly 15 years.
There should be just enough to pay NAB.
