Ex-Sunland Boss Reveals Towering ‘Retirement’ Vision

Seven residential towers across four Gold Coast sites with a combined end value of more than $2.2 billion. Now that—including a soon-to-be unveiled $580-million project in the works—is a development pipeline thumbing its nose at the prevailing industry challenges. And for 75-year-old former Sunland Group boss Soheil Abedian, it is also apparently the definition of “retiring gracefully”. But wait, there’s more. Abedian is also keeping busy with joint-venture discussions as he runs the rule over no less than eight other Gold Coast development sites for future highrise apartment projects. Not to mention the ongoing education-focused philanthropy and mentoring efforts that also still fill up a chunk of his diary. It is just shy of 12 months since Abedian finalised the strategic ASX delisting of Sunland, the development company he founded in 1983 and through which he fulfilled some towering ambitions. But despite trying to convince himself it was an opportune time to take a bow and make his exit, he remains one of Queensland’s busiest developers—albeit handing over much of the day-to-day heavy lifting to his family’s next generation in the process. ▲ The first project for the Abedian family after Sunland, Peerless is under construction at Mermaid Beach. “I was ready to retire gracefully,” he says. “I didn’t want to continue. I told myself after 40 years I’d made my contribution. I’d done the world’s first fashion-branded hotel Palazzo Versace. I’d done the tallest residential tower Q1. I’d done everything and anything and the only thing left was for me to retire. “But one thing led to the next thing and that is where we are now … after 55 years being in one specific arena of work, it becomes part of you.” Together with son Sahba—Sunland's former managing director with whom he has merged his property assets—he now heads up the private development company Abedian &amp; Co, with extended family under multiple entities among its shareholders. “We started last year with Abedian &amp; Co and it’s purely an Abedian family business,” he says. “It’s a new era. “We are not pursuing, like with Sunland, that we have to report and make profit for the sake of profit.What we are going to do is, every year we are going to start with one new highrise.” Construction is already under way on the first post-Sunland development—a 36-storey tower comprising about 100 apartments on a 1620sq m site at 35-41 Peerless Avenue, Mermaid Beach. It is due for completion in mid-2027. It is to be followed, according to Abedian, by what will be a four-tower redevelopment of the Greenmount Beach Resort site on a landmark headland between Coolangatta Beach and Rainbow Bay. ▲ A render of the first tower planned for the Greenmount site. Initial plans were filed in May last year for a 16-storey tower scheme designed by Contreras Earl, which also conceived the sculptural pedestal for the 44-storey 272 Hedges Avenue tower—one of Sunland’s final developments. An application was submitted this year for two further towers designed by 111 Design Studio on the site, which is approved to be subdivided into three lots. If all goes to plan, shovels are slated to hit the sand in the first quarter of next year. Meanwhile, true to form, the Abedians also have been seizing on opportunities that have emerged from the tough market conditions impacting the feasibilities and delivery of projects on the Gold Coast. They have been padding out their pipeline, scooping up three Broadbeach development sites—two of them adjoining parcels at 14-18 and 20 Mary Avenue, opposite the Broadbeach State School. Abedian revealed exclusively to The Urban Developer a development application is to be lodged imminently for a $580-million, 47-storey tower comprising 115 apartments on the amalgamated 2024sq m site. Pending approval, construction is pencilled to begin in early 2026. The Mary Avenue holdings were offloaded by Sydney-based Bassar Group and Melbourne-based Little Projects, respectively, after they aborted their tower projects greenlit for the sites. They were reportedly secured for a combined $20 million-plus. Previously, the Abedians also have added a 1548sq m site at 5-9 Anne Avenue, Broadbeach, to their books. It was acquired from fellow veteran Gold Coast developer Jim Raptis, who had earmarked it for a 35-storey, 146-apartment tower. ▲ Q1, opened in 2005 and developed by Sunland, remains the tallest building in Australia. A new scheme is planned for the site but it is still a work in progress. Abedian says the times are tough in the development industry but “definitely not” as severe as the impact from the 2008 global financial crisis. And he should know. He weathered it as well as his share of boom-bust cycles during the past four decades. “The biggest problem that Australia is facing now is construction,” he says. “Property values have gone up but not come down because we don’t have enough supply.” Asked if he still has any unrealised development aspirations, Abedian muses: “No, leave me alone ... I’m just here to entertain everybody”. But perhaps there is one. As a developer of 40,000 homes and counting, Abedian clearly has views on how Australia’s housing affordability crisis could be solved and happily voices them when the opportunity arises. “What I'm going to tell you, other developers would actually object to. “I actually believe it needs to be legislated that a portion—call it 5 to 10 per cent—of the homes created in every residential development in Australia needs to be given to an agency established by the government for affordable housing and they determine who qualifies to take that ,” he says. “Be it in [the Gold Coast’s millionaires row] Hedges Avenue or be it in Upper Coomera, it doesn’t matter where it is. I don ’ t mind if a first-home buyer is living next to a BHP board member. That’s how community is built. That’s how we connect everybody together. “Legislate it, and I’m more than happy to be part of that solution. ”But to say we are going to put billions upon billions of dollars into building affordability and put everyone in that, we are not creating a community. We are dividing the community.” You are currently experiencing The Urban Developer Plus (TUD+), our premium membership for property professionals. Click here to learn more.

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