Damian Lester’s flagship North Tce carpark site to be sold off

Damian Lester had previously floated plans for a major development on the site, including this one.

A landmark development site in Adelaide’s biomedical precinct has hit the market as part of a receiver sale of properties once controlled by “carpark king” Damian Lester.

Mr Lester lost control of the flagship site in his crumbling property portfolio last month as creditors ramped up their bid to recover tens of millions of dollars in unpaid debts.

Stretching across 4715sq m, and with a further 278sq m of air rights, the offering is described by selling agents as “Adelaide’s most iconic privately owned healthcare development site”.

The carpark and development land wraps around the historic Newmarket Hotel site on the corner of North Tce and West Tce, which was sold to health, wealth and care services giant Australian Unity for $38.5m last month.

Colliers and Arrow Advisory Services, who are selling the site, described it as a “once-in-a-lifetime investment opportunity to undertake a major development of national significance”.

“The development site offers a unique opportunity for the delivery of wide ranging healthcare uses including an integrated clinical services hub for government, clinical and support services and/or administrative functions,” they say in their marketing material.

“Regardless of the ultimate use, the importance of the site and its development potential are unquestionable.”

Mr Lester has owned the land for 20 years and had ambitions to develop it with high-rise office and hotel towers. However several proposals over the years failed to get off the ground.

More recently the site was short-listed as a potential location for a new 14,000sq m laboratory for SA Pathology, but SA Pathology’s move was put on hold last year when the new Labor government committed to a major review of the city’s future hospital and health infrastructure needs.

Mr Lester’s companies that owned the land fell into receivership on April 21, prompting the sale of the expansive site after an earlier sell-off of 10 properties once controlled by the colourful businessman.

View of the site from North Tce. Picture: Google Street View

In March, receivers began a sell-off of 10 retail, industrial and development properties in what Mr Lester described at the time as a “restructuring” of his portfolio.

A report prepared by receivers reveals one secured creditor, Bond Finance No 5 Pty Ltd, is owed $66.7m by Mr Lester’s property-holding companies, with other undisclosed debts owed to parties including the Australian Taxation Office, Revenue SA and Adelaide City Council.

The North Tce site is located in Adelaide’s north-western corner, in a burgeoning health and medical precinct dubbed Adelaide BioMed City.

The area is home to the Royal Adelaide Hospital, the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, the Australian Bragg Centre for Proton Therapy and Research currently under construction and the new Women’s and Children’s Hospital planned for the Thebarton Police Barracks site.

In 2013 Mr Lester unveiled ambitious plans for a $150m office and hotel development on the site, comprising two high rise towers on North Tce and West Tce.

That was followed in 2015 with plans to build a $32m hotel fronting West Tce.

Both projects failed to get off the ground.

Selling agents for the North Tce site declined to comment.