Urban Logistics Cleared to Refurbish Tottenham Sheds

Urban Logistics Co has won approval to further develop a 12ha west Melbourne industrial site, which houses the former factories of Olympic swim champion Sir Frank Beaurepaire.

Maribyrnong City Council will allow ULC to build an additional 7050sq-m industrial warehouse, including five tenancies from 1150sq m to 1850sq m on the site at Tottenham, about 9km west of the Melbourne CBD.

And ULC will refurbish five buildings dating back to immediately after World War II. Built in the Moderne style of the time, the office building and four factories have mostly red-brick bases with upper walls clad in corrugated iron, clerestory windows and steel-framed, bolted and welded saw-tooth roofs.

ULC’s chief executive, Narelle Checchin, said they had chosen a non-traditional industrial architect—Matthew Woodward Architects—to undertake the design of both old and new.

“Through refurbishment of the existing buildings we aim to preserve the unique architectural form and character of the estate while giving it a new lease of life, maintaining modern functionality,” she said.

Beaurepaire, who won silver and bronze freestyle medals at the 1908 London and 1924 Paris Olympic games, built a multimillion-dollar tyre business before turning his attention to cable-making. Olympic Cables moved to the new Tottenham factory in 1947.

A foundation stone within the complex says additional factories were opened in April of 1960 by then prime minister Robert Menzies.

▲ One of the historic post- World War II factories with its distinctive steel-framed, bolted and welded saw-tooth roofs.

The Tottenham complex at 207 Sunshine Road, is one of seven development applications lodged by ULC in the past 18 months, all of which will potentially add up to 50,000sq m of gross lettable area to the company’s burgeoning portfolio.

Checchin has said she wants to double ULC’s portfolio to $2 billion over the next five years.

The Tottenham site—acquired by ULC in May 2021—counts inventory and supply chain services provider TIC Group as its major tenant. TIC currently leases about 66,500sq m across five buildings.

Founded in 2019, ULC is a joint venture between Wentworth Capital and a fund managed by the US investment giant BlackRock Alternatives. Its approach has been to acquire and manage logistics assets in inner Sydney and Melbourne markets, often adaptively reusing existing industrial sites.

As with other recent development applications, the Tottenham factory is being built speculatively. The critical shortage of industrial and logistics space generally, and in Melbourne specifically, has meant ULC can adopt a “build-it-and-they-will-come” philosophy.

Urban Planning Office, who lodged the application documents with Maribyrnong said: “Though customers have not been finalised, the proposed design is based upon tested client requirements and provides ready-made facilities for an immediate market response and anticipated occupation in 2023.”

The new development is just 5km from the port of Melbourne and nearby arterials roads such as Princes Highway provide access to Melbourne’s freeway network. Tottenham railway station is 500m away.

▲ The first phase of Centennial's Tottenham industrial park build is nearing completion.

Meanwhile, and less than 2km away, property funds manager Centennial has inked an 11-year deal with Cleanaway for 10,890sq m of space in the soon-to-be-completed first stage of its Tottenham industrial park refurbishment.

Centennial acquired the 10.37ha industrial site late in 2018 for $22 million.

“We’ll continue to identify and acquire quality mid-space assets throughout the southern states,” Centennial general manager Matt Skerrett said.

“That now comprises 25 assets in Victoria, three in South Australia along with a further five sites in the development pipeline,” he said.