Prominent Timaru property on State Highway One hits the market

A large multi-tenanted commercial property on one of central Timaru’s most prominent State Highway One intersections has been placed on the market by CBRE.

Tim Rookes, CBRE Christchurch Managing Director and Paul Brown, CBRE Associate Director of investment sales, are marketing the freehold 6,420sqm site at the corner of Sefton Street, Sophia Street and Theodosia Street for sale by deadline private treaty closing on July 16 2026, unless sold prior.

The property is located in the Bay Hill area overlooking Caroline Bay and is less than 100 metres from Timaru’s main commercial and retail precinct. 

The site’s three street frontages, visibility and income from six well-established tenants make it a significant commercial offering for South Canterbury, said Rookes.

“This substantial property is home to well-established businesses providing a strong and diversified income stream. Every vehicle travelling along State Highway One through Timaru passes this corner, giving it prime street profile. The combination of size, tenant quality and location make it one of the best commercial property investments available locally.”

The six tenants generate total net income of around $651,000 a year and include vehicle sales, hospitality and office occupiers. 

Autoworld Timaru, a multi-brand vehicle dealership for Volkswagen, Nissan and Kia, occupies the site’s main corner building. Its facilities include a fully refurbished showroom, a large workshop and a substantial vehicle display yard. 

Bullock Restaurant & Bar, one of the city’s most popular hospitality and function venues, occupies a two-level tenancy on the same corner, which includes a restaurant, bar and function spaces and an outdoor seating area.

The adjacent two-level building facing Sefton Street is home to Saikou, an Asian fusion restaurant and bar, along with a mix of professional services tenants.

The site’s 100 off-street car parks are a key benefit for the tenants on site and their customers, Brown said.

“This volume of car parking right at the edge of the Timaru CBD is increasingly rare. The car yard and office tenants rely on it through the day, and the hospitality venues draw solid evening trade because of it. It helps create a genuine destination that works across multiple usage types.”

The ample car parking land also creates a potential future value-add opportunity for the new owner, who could look to plan additional development on the site, he added. 

The Saikou restaurant and upstairs office spaces on Sefton Street capture uninterrupted views across the Caroline Bay recreation area to the Pacific Ocean. A hotel and premium apartment development, proposed for a site on the opposite side of the street, is not expected to impact these views once constructed, said Rookes.

“The proposed hotel and apartment development across the road would further energise the Bay Hill precinct and benefit the tenants on the site. A further new building on the Theodosia Street side, under construction for an accountancy firm, adds to the area’s growing momentum.”

South Canterbury provides a resilient economic backdrop to investment in Timaru. The Timaru district’s economy has consistently outperformed national averages, with its goods-producing industries accounting for nearly 30 per cent of GDP in 2025 compared with 17 per cent nationally. 

The district’s rural economy is a key source of resilience amid broader national and global headwinds, underpinned by the dairy sector and Fonterra’s payout increase. Other local economic contributors include PrimePort Timaru, which reported a 30% increase in profit before tax in its 2024/25 annual results, Rookes said.

“The economic growth trajectory of South Canterbury, supported by agriculture, port activity and a growing tourism sector, underpins strong investor appetite for quality commercial property in the city. With all of these factors coming together to support Timaru and the wider region, we are expecting strong interest in this multi-tenanted property.”