$600,000 for no-name Melbourne laneway

A Melbourne laneway has been snapped up for about $600,000, amid intense interest from more than 100 potential buyers.

The future of the obscure, unnamed lane, which runs off another laneway between Little Bourke and Lonsdale Sts, remains a mystery.

It was speculated during its selling campaign that the rare 59sqm piece of CBD land could be transformed into a retail space, car parking, or a staple of Melbourne’s colourful lanes: a trendy, hard-to-find bar.

Commercial Insights: Subscribe to receive the latest news and updates

Colliers International Victoria selling agent Chris Ling says some of the potential buyers who pursued the rare piece of real estate off Niagara Lane even considered building “little houses” on it.

The lane runs off Niagara Lane in Melbourne’s CBD.

That outcome is unlikely, with the site ultimately selling to a local investor with other CBD property holdings for about $600,000.

The price includes the honour of choosing a title for the small strip, which had been owned by a prominent Melbourne family for the past 70 years.

Ling says he isn’t aware of the buyer’s plans, but he expects them to land bank the site for the meantime.

If they were to develop it, they would need to ensure there was “no substantial interference” to an access easement over the property, the agent says.

The lane’s prime CBD position was a selling point.

Ling says a “mixed bag” of more than 100 parties pursued it, including investors, retail and bar operators, and people hoping to put “little houses or car parking stackers” on it.

Its price point, position near famed restaurant strip Hardware Lane and the scarcity of CBD land had made it popular — along with the prestige of owning one of the city’s cultural gems.

The laneway sold almost two weeks before its expressions of interest campaign was due to close, after the investor made an offer that was too good to refuse.

The property had belonged to prominent Melbourne family the Lechtes since 1948, when Alan Lechte bought it along with the nearby St Francis Hotel and several warehouses.

Peter Lechte’s family had owned the laneway for 70 years. Picture: Jason Edwards.

He held on to the laneway when he sold the hotel, as it was on a separate title.

Alan’s son and a beneficiary of the sale, Lechte Corporation co-director Peter Lechte, told the Herald Sun earlier this month that the site would be ideal for “a little bar”.

“This is what’s happening to Melbourne’s laneways,” he said.

This article from the Herald Sun first appeared as “Melbourne laneway fetches about $600k amid intense buyer interest”.