Troubled property developer’s upmarket subdivisions in Christchurch and Wānaka up for mortgagee sale

Thursday, 21 November 2024

Artist's impression of a house in the Bowenvale Heights subdivision planned for Bowenvale Ave in Cashmere, Christchurch.

Mortgagees are selling two upmarket housing developments in Christchurch and Wānaka headed by a troubled property developer.

The properties for sale are Bowenvale Heights, an architecturally designed homes and land subdivision in Bowenvale Valley in Cashmere, and the Stoney Creek luxury townhouse development near the lakefront in Wānaka township.

Together they have a market value of close to $30 million.

The site of the Bowenvale Heights housing development in Christchurch.

Both are owned by the GCO Group, whose director is Auckland-based Andrew Bendemski. They are being offered for sale by negotiation by real estate agency Bayleys on behalf of the mortgagees.

The Wānaka land earmarked for the Stoney Creek townhouse development, centre.

GCO Group has property developments across the country. One of its companies behind another planned Christchurch development has recently gone into receivership and, late last year, another of its companies sold a central city site earmarked for a hotel.

The Bowenvale Heights subdivision has been planned with architecturally designed homes to be built on 35 new residential sections ranging in size from 564m² to 2121m². It also includes new roading.

An artist’s impression of luxury townhouse development Stoney Creek, Wānaka.

The land covers five hectares at the end of Bowenvale Ave, next to the Bowenvale Reserve.

Late last year GCO Group put the Cashmere site on the market, but denied the project was being squeezed by market conditions. It paid $2.75m for the land in 2022.

Stoney Creek has consent for 59 luxury townhouses in 18 blocks, plus communal facilities, set around new roading. The site is on Kelliher Dr, about 250 metres from Lake Wānaka, and has a market value estimated by mortgagee Senior Trust Capital Ltd at $24m to $26m.

Senior Trust launched the mortgagee sale after unsuccessfully seeking repayment earlier in the year of the $15.9m GCO Group borrowed against the property.

GCO Group paid $18m for the Wānaka land when it bought it, also in a mortgagee sale, from Roy's Bay Estate Ltd in 2022.

Advertising for the property says a buyer could continue with the planned development, alter the plans to suit, or develop it as something else.

An artist's impression of homes in the Blue Skies Estate subdivision in northern Christchurch.

Meanwhile, receivers have moved in over another of Bendemski’s Christchurch projects.

One of GCO Group’s companies, Blue Skies GCO Ltd planned to develop the Blue Skies Estates subdivision on land it owns on Johns Rd near Northwood.

It was to include 100 sections in three stages, with titles for the first stage expected to be ready this month.

Financier Alpha First Securities put the company into receivership last month. The receivership includes management over the 5.5 hectare Johns Rd block.

In September, another of the GCO companies, Peterborough GCO Ltd, sold a central Christchurch site with resource consent to build an 11-storey hotel on Peterborough St, near Victoria St.

The site’s new owner, property company Possum Ridge Ltd, has picked up the project and hopes to start work on the 148-room hotel early next year.