Soho Square Ponsonby
Encyclopedia
Soho Square Ponsonby was a failed development in the suburb of Grey Lynn
in Auckland, New Zealand. The $250 million project was announced in 2006 and was meant to be a major attraction in the area with apartments, office space and retail areas. Construction started on the site of an old yeast
manufacturing plant, but progress was slow and the developers had gone into receivership
by the end of 2009. In May 2010 receivers signed a conditional contract with Innovus, this bid failed due dilligence and Soho Square was back on the market in August 2010. The site remains an unused excavated hole.
, Auckland
, near Western Park. It was to occupy 1.3 hectares, almost the whole block within Williamson Avenue, Pollen Street and Crummer Road.
The developer website stated that the site would contain 25,000m² of office space, 35 retail shops, 53 apartments and over 1250 undercover car parks.
group) and up until that stage had been producing nearly all of the compressed yeast
in New Zealand. The plant has since been moved to Hamilton
.
In 2006 the location was bought by the Marlin Group. The resulting proposal was not without controversy, with many in the area protesting the development. In 2008 resource consent
was turned down. Protests against the development continued after construction had halted, one included a group of artists using the area as a swimming pool.
The development did not progress any further than the initial excavation for five floors of planned underground car park.
Grey Lynn
Grey Lynn is an inner residential suburb of Auckland City, New Zealand, located three kilometres to the west of the city centre. Originally a separate borough, Grey Lynn amalgamated with Auckland City in 1914....
in Auckland, New Zealand. The $250 million project was announced in 2006 and was meant to be a major attraction in the area with apartments, office space and retail areas. Construction started on the site of an old yeast
Yeast
Yeasts are eukaryotic micro-organisms classified in the kingdom Fungi, with 1,500 species currently described estimated to be only 1% of all fungal species. Most reproduce asexually by mitosis, and many do so by an asymmetric division process called budding...
manufacturing plant, but progress was slow and the developers had gone into receivership
Receivership
In law, receivership is the situation in which an institution or enterprise is being held by a receiver, a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights." The receivership remedy is an equitable remedy that emerged in...
by the end of 2009. In May 2010 receivers signed a conditional contract with Innovus, this bid failed due dilligence and Soho Square was back on the market in August 2010. The site remains an unused excavated hole.
Planned location and features
The project was planned for the west end of Grey LynnGrey Lynn
Grey Lynn is an inner residential suburb of Auckland City, New Zealand, located three kilometres to the west of the city centre. Originally a separate borough, Grey Lynn amalgamated with Auckland City in 1914....
, Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, near Western Park. It was to occupy 1.3 hectares, almost the whole block within Williamson Avenue, Pollen Street and Crummer Road.
The developer website stated that the site would contain 25,000m² of office space, 35 retail shops, 53 apartments and over 1250 undercover car parks.
History of the site
From 1910 the site had been a yeast production plant. The former Dominion Yeast Company site was sold in 2004 by New Zealand Food Industries (now part of the international AB MauriAB Mauri
AB Mauri is an operating division of Associated British Foods . It was formed in 2004 from the bakery ingredients businesses that ABF had acquired, including those from Australian Burns Philp, Sohovos in Brazil, and Oregon-based Innovative Cereal Systems....
group) and up until that stage had been producing nearly all of the compressed yeast
Yeast
Yeasts are eukaryotic micro-organisms classified in the kingdom Fungi, with 1,500 species currently described estimated to be only 1% of all fungal species. Most reproduce asexually by mitosis, and many do so by an asymmetric division process called budding...
in New Zealand. The plant has since been moved to Hamilton
Hamilton, New Zealand
Hamilton is the centre of New Zealand's fourth largest urban area, and Hamilton City is the country's fourth largest territorial authority. Hamilton is in the Waikato Region of the North Island, approximately south of Auckland...
.
In 2006 the location was bought by the Marlin Group. The resulting proposal was not without controversy, with many in the area protesting the development. In 2008 resource consent
Resource consent
A resource consent is the authorisation given to certain activities or uses of natural and physical resources required under the New Zealand Resource Management Act . Some activities may either be specifically authorised by the RMA or be permitted activities authorised by rules in plans...
was turned down. Protests against the development continued after construction had halted, one included a group of artists using the area as a swimming pool.
The development did not progress any further than the initial excavation for five floors of planned underground car park.
External links
- Soho Square - The company website is currently offline