General Property Trust, Lend Lease Win $1B Australia Assignment

SYDNEY-The New South Wales Government has selected a joint venture of Australian developer Lend Lease Corp. Ltd. and real estate investor General Property Trust for the development of a $1-billion master-planned community in Sydney’s north-west corridor. The estimated 10-year project will include 1,500 housing units, up to 1.9 million sf of retail and commercial space and about 50 acres of open space.

The Lend Lease/General Property joint venture is working on the project under the direction of the New South Wales Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources, and Landcom, a state-owned land development corporation. The partnership concludes six months of negotiations between DIPNR, Landcom, Lend Lease and GPT following the shortlisting of the Lend Lease and GPT joint venture in February. The parties must still gain approval for the proposed master plan and sign off on a product delivery agreement.

Lend Lease has a 51% interest in the joint venture and GPT has a 49% interest. According to the provisions of the joint venture, a change of control of either GPT or GPT Management Limited gives Lend Lease a call option to acquire GPT’s interest in the project. GPT has a call option to acquire Lend Lease’s interest in the event of a change in control of Lend Lease Corporation.