One of the few remaining empty sites on the city fringe is on the market and a developer with $60 million-plus cheque has the chance to build apartments and a hotel.
Formerly owned by the NSW government's State Property Authority, the site has been vacant since the former AIDS Council moved out a few years ago. It has the attraction of Central Station and Hyde Park within walking distance but, like most of Sydney, developments are long and drawn out processes.
The site, at 9-25 Commonwealth Street in inner-Sydney suburb Surry Hills and occupied with a three-storey building, was sold by the NSW government in July 2013 for $20.1 million to a private developer, Coronation Property.
But with no zoning, the developer shelved all plans and sold it to a private Chinese investor for about $45 million in 2014.
But they too had to go to the Land and Environment Court to get the development approval and after a long process there is now Stage 2 approval for 52 designed luxury apartments and 132 hotel rooms.
Once developed, the triple-fronted area will be the final puzzle in the area, which has become a dormant zone for local residents.
Knight Frank's John Bowie Wilson, Tim Holtsbaum and Dominic Ong are advising on the sale and said as Sydney's house prices continue to skyrocket, "essentially, an apartment in the city is more affordable than a free standing house in the eastern suburbs".
Mr Bowie Wilson said a buyer has the chance to walk in and start work now that the site has been "de-risked" of planning issues.
He said while there is a plethora of residential development in the southern end of the Sydney city, the high-end luxury market remained in low supply.
