CITY PROPERTY SALES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19780, 29 October 1927, Page 10

CITY PROPERTY SALES.

FOUR IMPORTANT DEALS. BUILDING NEAR TOWN HALL. RECORD PRICE FOR AREA. AVERAGE OF £4OO A FOOT. A marked revival of interest in city properties is indicated by four substantial deals negotiated in Auckland within the past few days. The properties affected are Porter's Buildings, in Central Queen Street, Arthur's Buildings, in Dpper Queen Street, Messrs* Russell, Campbell and McVeagh's three-storeyed building in O'Connell Street and one of the oldest shop and ofhc« buildings in Wyndham Street. The sum of £40,000 is involved in the sale of the three-storeyed brick building at the corner of Queen and Airedale Streets, occupied by Richard Arthur, j Ltd. The name of the purchaser has not been disclosed. The property has a fron tage of approximately 100 ft. to Queen Street and 90ft. to Airedale Street and the price of £4OO a foot is claimed to be a record for that, portion of the city contiguous to the Town Hall. The only recent sale of note m Upper Queen Street was that of the property of Tonson Gar lick Company, Ltd., to John Fuller and Sons, Ltd., for £75,000, or £ll2B a foot on the Queen Street frontage. That pro perty, however, is somewhat nearer the heart of the city, particularly the popu lar theatre area, and constituted a record for that locality. ' The sale was made for purely private reasons, explained Mr. T. B. Arthur, yesterday, and would not in any way affect the business of auctioneers and agents at present carried on by his firm, which would continue in occupation. Porter Block Sold In Two Lots. After languishing on the property market for over a year and providing a subject for a dozen rumours, Porter's block, in Queen Street, changed hands at a prico which ranks high among re cent record* for Queen Street frontages. Although the site was valued at £BO,OOO for the purposes of the "Porter's Arcade" project which lapsed some months ago, this figure was not reached in tn®. deal effected yesterday.

The Porter block is one of the most valuable io this portion of the city. It has frontages of 50ft. to Queen Street and High Street and the depth is 186 ft E. Porter and Company, ironmongers, commenced business on the site over 50 years ago.

The exceptional depth of the property has somewhat restricted its market, but the trustees solved the problem by selling the block in two lots of approximately the same size. The Queen Street frontage, the most valuable half, has been bought by a Wellington firm, which proposes to erect a five-storey building, portion of which will be used for its retail business. The tenants of this section of the building have to give possession to the new owners early in January. The back portion of the section with the High Street frontage has been bought by Mr. George Walker, auctioneer, for his own business. Insurance Company's Purchase. The third largo transaction effected yesterday was the sale of Messrs. Russell, Campbell and McVeagh's three-storey building in O'Connell Street to the National Insurance Company, which at present occupies an old building in Queen Street adjoining the Auckland Stock Exchange. Messrs. Russell, Campbell and McVeagh's premises were erected a few years ago. The property has a frontage of about 42ft. to O'Connell Street, and the depth is about 80ft. Mr. J. B. King, plumber, was the purchaser of the Wyndham Street property offered at auction yesterday by Messrs. Rutherford, Robinson and Austin on behalf of the third mortgagee. The premises have a frontage of 25ft. 6in. to Wyndham Street and a depth of 115 ft to the rear entrances in Theatre Lane. Xhe old storey brick building is at present occupied by A. Bowring, stationer, and a number of other tenants. Mr. King, who bought the building and freehold for £5500, proposes to erect a four-storey structure on the site next jear.