The Medich Family are $499M richer following the settlement last week of their substantial landholding adjacent to the proposed second airport at Badgerys Creek.
The land at 1953 Elizabeth Drive has been acquired by Roberts Jones Bringelly Pty Ltd who are associated with Chinese property billionaire Shen Yuxing, also known as Tin Ching Shum of Jiayuan International Group and BHL. The purchaser also acquired 73 ha of land at 1037 The Northern Road Bringelly which settled in December last year for $77M.
The Badgerys Creek property is a massive 344ha of Enterprise zoned land ideally positioned directly opposite the Western Sydney Airport. Whilst the vast majority of the land is to be dedicated to the construction of the M12 Motorway and the Western Sydney Metro, the site’s proximity to airport and transport infrastructure make for an ideal location for business development.
The site has been the subject of unwelcome attention since 2009 when the media spotlight fell on the Medich Family and their links to the Government. A subsequent corruption inquiry found no evidence of any planning decisions that benefited the Mediches.
The sale of the land has been discussed for over 3 years when it was first revealed that caveats had been lodged by the purchaser.
With the Western Sydney Airport set to open in 2026, development of the land is likely to start in earnest within the next 4 years.
Draft plans for the Aerotropolis Core, Badgerys Creek, Wianamatta-South Creek, Agribusiness and Northern Gateway Precincts were released earlier this year and are currently on public exhibition until 12 March 2021.
The North Gateway Structure Plan (as indicated below) shows that the land will be used predominantly for large scale Enterprise businesses with a local Retail Centre supporting the precinct.
Developers in the precinct will be required to pay a Special Infrastructure Contribution to assist in the funding of $1.1bn of state works, including transport, health, education, biodiversity offsets and other state services. It is likely that the land to be dedicated to the infrastructure works will offset the purchasers’ Special Infrastructure Contributions .
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The implications of the transport overlay on the site are that the developable area will shrink to around 117ha which reflects an effective rate per square metre of circa $430/sqm, however whilst the SIV levy will likely cost the developer $23m, they are also likely to be the recipient of compensation monies from other SIV levies for the resumed land, which will ultimately bring down the cost of their land.
The land is a very strategic site and will be one of the first sites on Elizabeth Drive to attract tenants given its ultimate proximity to the airport and M10 interchange.
It is unclear when the purchaser proposes to develop the land, however opportunities ought to exist with local developers of land who may wish to capitalise on the purchasers position.
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