unfortunately there is no detail regarding how much VPG received...

unfortunately there is no detail regarding how much VPG received for the sale? of its share in this project

the full year presentation on Thursday 26 August will be
very interesting i'm sure, its about time for the tide to turn!

Freight boss drives project
Author: Philip Hopkins
Date: 04/08/2010
Words: 583
Source: AGE
Publication: The Age
Section: Business
Page: 16


Little Developments is moving on to big things, writes Philip Hopkins.
TRANSPORT chief Paul Little's reputation as a property developer has been further underlined with the release of a prestigious new apartment project in Port Melbourne.

The site at 87-101 Bay Street has a permit in place for 296 apartments, 322 car spaces and several retail shops. Its historic facade will be integrated into the design.

The 10-storey apartment block will cost about $70 million to build, with total sales expected to raise $150 million.

Mr Little's private property company, Little Project Developments, has taken over the Valad Property group's share of the project and has formed an agreement with Pomeroy Pacific as both a joint-venture partner and project manager.

Little Project's managing director, Michael Fox, said the company expected to start its marketing campaign within two months, with construction expected to start later in the year.

"Most apartments will be one or two bedrooms, with some three  bigger apartments are getting harder to sell," he told BusinessDay. "We're also likely to rejig the numbers down a bit to 260 apartments. It's just a little too crowded."

Port Melbourne is just one more brick in the wall for Little. Building warehouses and industrial sites is part and parcel of running Toll Holdings, Australia's biggest transport and logistics company, but Paul Little has the property bug.

He set up Little Project Developments and appointed Michael Fox to look after the private property business.

Fox  no relation to the trucking magnate  was previously Toll's head of industrial property, overseeing more than $1 billion of industrial development in Altona.

Little Project's initial successes included a 133-apartment project in the old Cussons soap factory in Stawell Street, Richmond, and the transformation of the two-level Bunnings store on the old PMP site at Burwood Road, Hawthorn. These have turned out to be an "hors d'oeuvre" to the main menu.

Little's projects in planning or under construction constitute about 1250 apartments with a value of more than $600 million. These are:

A $100 million development of the derelict former Tip Top Bakery site in East Brunswick  390 apartments, townhouses, home-office studios, commercial offices and a childcare centre.

Ilk, a $200 million, 388-apartment project at 227 Toorak Road.

Halo Apartments, a 160-apartment joint venture with Macquarie Real Estate at 161 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda.

A luxury, 48-apartment block at Wattle Road, Hawthorn.

There is also a 220-lot subdivision, Amberley, at Pakenham, which is one-third sold.

It hasn't all been plain sailing. There are objections to the Tip Top project, and another developer  a joint venture between APN and the Palin family  has lodged an objection to Ilk.

Fox said Little Projects had agreed to build a public car park at the Tip Top site in response to the protests. APN's objection to Ilk has been called in by Minister for Planning Justin Madden.

The company's approach is to buy old, inner-city commercial or industrial sites for residential developments, Fox said. "We aim to stay local and focused.

"We are no 'fly-by-night' developer. The aim is to provide something a little bit better," he said.

The company has employed prominent architects: Plus Architecture is behind the Port Melbourne project, while RotheLowman is looking after Tip Top. Cox Architects, the designer of AAMI Park, is the Ilk architect.

Fox said it was getting harder for developers to build larger apartments. "It's harder to sell

off the plan. Owner-occupiers like bigger units, but prefer to see and feel before buying. With the banks and global financial crisis, it's tough to get funding for buildings like that."