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New future projected for former seaside cinema
New future projected for former seaside cinema
A former dance hall and movie theatre which were once the heart and soul of a bustling seaside community are on the market for sale.
The buildings and land immediately overlooking Waihi Beach in the Coromandel region are part of a commercial property portfolio which also features one the town’s corner grocery store/dairy and takeaways shops, along with a largely unused retail premises which was previously a liquor store, and various accommodation options.
The high profile location of the property – immediately adjacent to Waihi Beach car park and a mere stone’s throw from the Waihi Beach Surf Life Saving Club – has thrown up the potential that the land and buildings could be developed into a low-rise/high value apartment block.
The corner block has three land titles combined into one site of 1557 square metres, with a combined capital valuation of $1.665million. The block and its buildings have been placed on the market for sale through Bayleys, with a price tag of $1.56million. Bayleys Tauranga commercial salesperson Brendon Bradley said that in their current format, the buildings were performing well below their potential.
Mr Bradley said the site consisted of what was a former dance hall and movie theatre, a dairy and takeaway store, a large vacant unit with residential apartment above, a sleepout garage style building, and numerous car parks. The property is bordered by a reserve and council car park.
“The large rectangular corrugated iron building overlooking the park started life in 1930 as a dance hall, and was extended and converted into a cinema in 1962. However, the cinema as many would have remembered is long-closed, with all seating and screening equipment having been removed. At present it is used as a workshop and storage area, with a residential tenancy occupying the former projection room upstairs,” Mr Bradley said.
“Beside that is the dairy and takeaways – built in 1977 in a style you’d see in hundreds of small towns throughout New Zealand. Then completing the trio of buildings is a former liquor store retail premises built in 1992, with alterations made in 1996 when the first floor accommodation was constructed.
“Amenities on the 153 square metre ground floor commercial space consist of a retail showroom, office and store room, and rear loading bay. Upstairs, the open-plan dwelling consists of two large bedrooms, a tiled kitchen opening to a conservatory area, and separate toilet/bathroom facilities. The residence has spectacular views over the beachfront and out to Mayor Island.”
Overlooking the golden dunes of Waihi beach is the plywood clad timber framed shed which has been converted into a self-contained unit with bedroom living area, kitchenette, toilet and bathroom.
“The only current lease income is from the dairy/takeaway store and periodic residential tenancies from the dwellings. This could be viewed as holding income while planning approval and consents are considered for an expansion or redevelopment of the buildings,” Mr Bradley said.
The dairy and takeaway site is leased until June 2012 for $13,000 per annum and services the northern end of the town – including the nearby Waihi Beach Top 10 Holiday Park. The 162 square metre apartment above the vacant retail unit has a periodic residential tenancy of $300 per week. The 96 square metre garage sleepout has a periodic residential tenancy of $130 per week. The residential accommodation above the old Waihi Picture Theatre has a periodic residential tenancy of $100 per week.
The property’s current owners have Western Bay of Plenty District Council resource consent granted to develop and expand the site into a mixed use commercial and residential complex. The resource consent – applicable through until 2056 – could see another four residential apartments built on the site with a commercial component for retail activity at the northern end.
Mr Bradley said that while the owners had originally intended to undertake the expansion and development themselves some six years ago, they now had a new agenda and were looking to simply sell up as they had moved on to a rural lifestyle block outside Waihi. The resource consent application for the land and buildings is included in the sale price.
“Waihi Beach has long been a coastal resort destination for those from Auckland, Tauranga, and the Waikato, and with roading networks consistently improving, the area is set to remain as a ‘get-away’ destination. In addition, the town has a stable population base – in essence being a satellite suburb of nearby Waihi township,” Mr Bradley said.
“The combination of a mixed use residential/commercial complex on this site opens up a raft of opportunities and ownership structures – either strata titling each building, operating the apartments as a commercial accommodation business, or retaining some of the property and selling or leasing out other selected aspects.”
ENDS
Bayleys Real Estate
New Zealand
Bayleys is New Zealand's largest full-service real estate company. We offer expertise in the marketing and sale of a wide range of property, including residential real estate, farms and lifestyle blocks, and commercial and industrial property. This includes tourism and business sales such as hotels and motels. We also cover the real estate markets in Fiji and other Pacific Islands.
Bayleys also provides a complete property and facilities service including property management and valuations teams focused on achieving both Owner and Tenant satisfaction.
No other real estate company can match our breadth of coverage across all market sectors throughout New Zealand.
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