Redemptorist missionaries list $25m-plus Brighton waterfront property next to yacht club
257 St Kilda St, Brighton, is expected to make more than $25m when sold.
A little-known order of Catholic missionaries is expected to make more than $25m selling a huge property on the Brighton foreshore.
But developers who have been praying for a waterfront address in the well-heeled suburb will have to compete, with mass interest for the property including those looking to resurrect it as a home.
Brighton’s current house price record is just above $25m, set with the sale of the Zagame hospitality family’s lavish beachfront mansion at 27-29 Kent Ave in July.
The Redemptorists group has owned the site for sale at 257 St Kilda St, Brighton, next door to the Royal Brighton Yacht Club for the past 60 years.
It’s not heritage listed and, while it is likely to set a new residential price benchmark for the suburb, it’s expected to be sell as a development site.
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The Redemptorists’ order consists of priests and consecrated religious brothers that have used the property as a Bayside base for their missionary work in social justice outreach programs.
They also produced the Majellan magazine and other publications at the Brighton property.
The Redemptorists have been present in Australia since 1882 and while initially an order of men has now diversified to include female members.
A spokesman said much of the material published from the property had been about “the gift and challenges in family life in Australia and New Zealand”.
“Its beautiful and calming vista has made it a welcoming place of hospitality for generations of families,” he said.
The 257 St Kilda St, Brighton, property has been owned by the Redemptorists for 60 years.
The sizeable holding is set right on the beach front near some of Brighton’s priciest homes.
In good news for its next owner, the 3348sq m address has direct access to the sand and only a boardwalk between it and the water.
Knight Frank sales and investments senior director James Thorpe said after less than a week on the market they had received more than 100 inquiries from a mix of local and interstate parties looking to develop or even re-establish the property as a private residence.
“A lot of people aren’t really sure what they will do with it, but all are conscious it is just under half an acre (2023sq m),” Mr Thorpe said.
“There’s a range of parties looking at doing anything from a single home to townhouses. The only consistency is that it won’t be high density.”
The 3348sq m property is one of the largest with direct access to the sand in the suburb.
The current owners have long enjoyed its relaxing vista.
He added there were also some well-known parties among those showing interest.
“There have been people who would be known in the community, including high-profile people and long-term property players,” Mr Thorpe said.
Developers will have the option of using the existing building or replacing it.
The property is set between the Royal Brighton Yacht Club and Mytton Grove, which features four more waterfront homes that are among the suburb’s priciest.
There is only a boardwalk between the property and the bay.
The property’s longest frontage is to ritzy Mytton Grove.
A retail property at 100 Church St, Brighton, sold for $32.08m in 2016.
The Redemptorists maintain Victorian locations in Kew and St Albans.
Expressions of interest in 257 St Kilda St, Brighton, are due by December 8.
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