La Trobe University aspires higher with $5b redevelopment
La Trobe University, in Melbourne’s north-east, has unveiled its vision for $5 billion redevelopment that will transform its Bundoora campus with a series of educational, health, and commercial property developments.
Established as the state’s third university in 1964, La Trobe is also a major landlord, with a 235-hectare campus in one of Melbourne’s busiest growth corridors.
The university is now stepping up its plans to realise the value of much of that pipeline in commercial property development, while creating new institutions that drive its educational offering.
As part of the grand plan, the university aims to provide new residential accommodation for as many as 12,000 residents, including staff and students, in varying formats and ownership models.
A small start has been made with around 600 studio apartments for students under way. When completed, the university may consider bringing in investment into that residential real estate, generating funds for the next student accommodation project.
It expects to ultimately create around 4500 student accommodation units. The rest will be private housing for the general market.
Among it all, the university is very interested in the build-to-rent model and is expected to look for partners in that. It has a comparative advantage by already having large land tracts in hand.
The university may release some portions of land for private development. In other cases, it will retain the freehold while offering offering long leaseholds to commercial players to allow for development.
La Trobe and the state government this week struck a $2 million agreement on a feasibility study on how to accelerate investment into what is being called the “University City of the Future” project.
“We are turning our campus ‘inside out’, welcoming our local communities to new and dynamic spaces, where community, industry, students and staff will work, live and learn,” La Trobe Vice-Chancellor, Professor John Dewar said this week.
The masterplan includes the development of a new city centre on the Bundoora campus with a substantial mix of commercial and retail facilities.
The university will piggy-back off that development, to create significant cultural facilities within the city centre.
Elsewhere, the third stage of La Trobe’s $150 million Sports Park is being finalised. A world-class research and innovation precinct is also in the mix.
Another major component in the grand plan is a Health and Wellbeing Hub that will include aged care, childcare and super-clinic facilities.
An expanded private hospital is the first stage of that health precinct, with ASX-listed Healthscope this week chosen as the preferred private hospital operator.
