A concept plan of a retail park on a site at Millingandi which is subject to conditional sale. Photo: Cushman & Wakefield.
Two recent events in the Bega Valley could reawaken expectations that a Bunnings hardware store will be built near Merimbula.
Tura Beach land at the corner of Sapphire Coast and Tura Beach drives was recently fenced. Owned by Wesfarmers, the land was originally destined to be a Bunnings store but presence of the Merimbula Star Hair plant, listed under NSW legislation as endangered, meant the project never came to fruition.
Asked about the fencing, Bunnings confirmed temporary fencing had been installed to secure the site and deter unauthorised use of the property. According to Bunnings, the organisation still hoped to bring a new store to the Merimbula community and expected to use the current site.
A report by Essential Economics in support of Bunnings’ original proposal in 2016 stated that as part of the normal store network planning process, Bunnings had identified the Far South Coast as one of the few major regional areas lacking direct access to a Bunnings store. At the time Bunnings said the store would meet the gap in hardware warehouse retailing serving residents, visitors and businesses in the region.
Meanwhile, on 25 August interest firmed up on a 45 hectare development site in Millingandi with concept planning for a retail park including a hardware store.
Put in the hands of major global real estate player, Cushman & Wakefield, the Millingandi site was listed as a large-scale development opportunity expected to attract offers in excess of $13 million. Expressions of interest on the property closed on 22 July following “very strong interest from private investors, developers and retail occupiers”, according to Cushman & Wakefield real estate agent Jake Smith.
Mr Smith confirmed the land was subject to a conditional sale, which was not yet completed but expected to be finalised before the end of the year.
Conditional sales of commercial property can include provisions for finance approval and planning approval, both of which may be required for a project of the size and scale proposed for the Millingandi site.
The site comprises two titles, including 13.6 hectares of developable land supported by a progressed concept development application for a hardware and building supplies store, Cushman & Wakefield said.
The site has been advertised by Cushman & Wakefield as including a “proposed masterplan which encompasses approximately 38,050 square metres of gross floor area, supported by extensive planning, engineering and technical investigations that have already addressed access, servicing, environmental management and infrastructure requirements”.
The real estate company said the application had already advanced key planning elements, including new access arrangements, an internal road connection between Millingandi Road and the Princes Highway and supporting assessments covering traffic, flooding, bushfire, biodiversity, acoustic performance and servicing infrastructure.
In 2023 the TFA Project Group prepared concept plans for a retail park, service centre and truck stop, food and drink drive-through tenancies, showroom tenancies including hardware, electrical and furniture, light industrial tenancies and warehouse storage.
TFA said that while the Millingandi Service Centre and Retail Precinct was initially a concept site design for a 2 hectare parcel of land for a service centre, it grew into a master planning engagement for a significant portion of the entire 45 hectare site.
Bunnings would not comment on whether it was looking at sites other than the one at Tura Beach to build a hardware store in the area.
