Parkville Store: Historic corner shop, cafe and residence for sale

News

Christina Karras

First published 03 March 2021, 10:58am

52 Morrah Street, Parkville, is up for sale.

An iconic Parkville corner store building with more than a century of continual business has hit the market.

The renowned cafe and three-bedroom residence at 52 Morrah Street has been listed with $3.1-$3.4m price hopes.

Nelson Alexander Carlton North’s Kristian Lunardi said the commercial space was currently run as the Parkville Store cafe under an existing four-year lease.

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The historical facade remains largely original.

Even signage advertising oats on the wall is still intact.

Lush greenery covers the rear of the property.

“The cafe has been in business since 2011, but the building has been home to about 136 years of continual trade,” Mr Lunardi said.

“It’s been a number of different things but it’s always been known as the Parkville Store as it reads on the top of the facade,” Mr Lunardi said.

He said the Victorian building was initially established in 1884 as a milk bar and had been maintained over the years to retain “nostalgic” touches of the property’s past.

“The historical facade and painted signage on the side of the property are the kind of details you just don’t see anymore,” he added.

The interior of the cafe.

Parisian outdoor dining.

The commercial kitchen.

“It would’ve been your local store where you went to go buy bubblegum and soda, and the traders still sell confectionary as a homage to the original store.”

“The main defining feature is that it’s had businesses that have survived for years and it’s still standing.”

Mr Lunardi said all the surrounding properties had all been converted to residences, which allowed the Parkville Store to enjoy “100 per cent of local trade”.

The listing includes a four-year tenant for the cafe.

Inside the residence.

A cosy retro kitchen and living space.

Other drawcards included the new on-street dining established during the pandemic, which added a “touch of Paris”, the period-style windows in the bedrooms, and a romantic north-facing courtyard.

The vendors who had used the property as their family residence for the past decade were selling to upsize.

Mr Lunardi said negotiations were already underway between two potential buyers.

“It’s an ideal opportunity for an investor,” he added. “It would be easy to find a tenant (for the residence) given it’s so close to Melbourne University.”

The property is for private sale.