On 29 April 2019, Auckland Council entered into a conditional agreement with Asset Plus Ltd for the sale of the council's offices at 35 Graham Street, subject to approval by Asset Plus shareholders at their meeting in June.
On 17 June 2019 the sale, for an agreed price of $58 million, was approved by Asset Plus shareholders at their meeting, with settlement to occur on 28 June 2019.
The offices, including the customer service centre, will continue to operate in this location until mid-2020, at which point (between May and August 2020) services and teams will relocate to the existing offices at Te Wharau o Tāmaki / Auckland House (135 Albert Street) and Te Wharau o Horotiu / Bledisloe House.
The sale was carried out on behalf of the council by its urban regeneration agency Panuku Development Auckland, who negotiated the successful sale and price for the property.
At the time of the proposed sale, Finance and Performance Committee Chair, Councillor Ross Clow, said:
“Our aim is to make council services more accessible to all Aucklanders, providing a contact point within 10km of where they live.
"The sale of Graham Street is a big step forward in delivering this vision as funds raised from the sale of buildings which no longer support our plans will be reinvested to create more modern facilities across the region.”
In addition to accessibility, the additional advantage in this approach is the avoidance of an estimated $117 million maintenance cost for the ear-marked buildings over the next 10-years.
Head of Corporate Property Rod Aitken explains, “The buildings we’ve identified as surplus to our future requirements would cost more to maintain in their current state than our 10-year budget allows.
"Selling off this part of our portfolio and re-investing in fit-for-purpose spaces is a far better outcome for both customers and staff.”
