Building's Facelift Returns Dividends

Building's Facelift Returns Dividends

An old Durham Street building has been given a new lease on life, and the investment's paying off.

Refurbishment of the former LWR Tailoring building at 21 Durham Street started in October last year. The extensive refurbishment involved the removal of a large portion of the building to create 57 carparks, the development of a high-profile showroom frontage and the preservation of the building's unique hardwood floors.

"The preservation of the hardwood floors is a unique and irreplaceable feature and is a real asset to the building. The decision to restore the floors shows vision both on the part of the building owner and the new tenants," says Simes commercial agent Craig Edwards.

The building's developer Ivan Atkinson, from Atkinson Development and Construction, says the floors were just part of the building's potential.

"The building also had a long, wide frontage which allowed us to open up the entire site. I'm delighted with the results," says Ivan Atkinson.

The refurbishment sparked major interest from potential tenants and resulted in the entire development being leased prior to completion.

"As well as benefiting the developer, the leasing of the development prior to completion means the tenants have been able to stipulate the fit-out for their requirements," says Craig Edwards.

An 1139m2 area of the development has been leased to Java Down Under Ltd, a successful furniture retailer from Wellington that is expanding into the Christchurch market. A 1411m2 area has been leased to apparel and printing company Badger Solutions, with a smaller tenancy being leased to fitness supplies store Action Fitness Ltd.

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