Developer Salta Properties has emerged as the $51 million buyer of a large site in Church Street as it looks to capitalise on surging office demand in Richmond, an inner-city Melbourne suburb dubbed "Silicon Yarra".
Salta, best known for its Victoria Gardens project at the northern end of Richmond, has put its foot on a two-storey corner building at 459-471 Church Street in the southern fringe of the suburb, where it plans to build 25,000 square metres of office space across three buildings.
The mixed use complex will include cafes and restaurants, a childcare centre, medical clinic, rooftop terraces and co-working spaces in a 6-star Green Star development, Salta's managing director Sam Tarascio said.
Melbourne's former industrial suburbs like Cremorne, Collingwood and South Melbourne have seen an apartment-led transformation, catering to young professionals keen on an inner-city cafe lifestyle.
Developers' focus has now shifted to workplaces and many are providing sleek new environmentally friendly offices to cater for tenants and Gen Y workers in creative and start-up industries.
The transformation has made Cremorne one of the country's most active office markets, with surging rents leading to a spike in development proposals and land values.
A slew of start-ups, creative industry players and heavy technology companies like REA Group, Carsales.com, MYOB, Tesla, Uber and Vinomofo have established themselves in Cremorne.
Salta has yet to gain development approval for the property which faces Church, Shamrock and Brighton streets and is on the doorstep of East Richmond Railway Station.
"We are confident this property will mirror the success of our commercial developments at Victoria Gardens Corporate and Nexus Corporate," Mr Tarascio said.
Another development proposal on the opposite side of the street from Salta's at 600 Church is under due diligence and expected to sell to a developer for a similar sum.
Nearby, Zig Inge Group is overseeing a new seven-level 7200-square-metre extension to its property at 57 Balmain Street and local developer Alfasi has plans under way for an 11-level, 20,000-square-metre high-tech building at 506-508 Church Street.
