Goodman own 245,000 square metres (24% of all floor space) in Macquarie Park and will stimulate the troubled commercial market through creating a new desirable place for people to live.

Given the site is zoned E2 Commercial Core, an office development is permissible on the site. Goodman considered this as part of its highest and best use analysis, but a market analysis report concluded that such a development is uneconomic. This is due to weak tenancy demand for Macquarie Park’s underperforming and sterile office market, which has been in decline for some time.

Numerous state and federal government initiatives have been developed recently to assist in alleviating and reducing the pressure of the current housing affordability and supply crisis in NSW. At a finer grain level, with the adoption of the Macquarie Park Innovation Place Strategy, Macquarie Park is set to undergo a major transition from a predominately business centre to a vibrant mixed-use neighbourhood to accommodate an 18-hour economy with increased population. What this means is that in Macquarie Park, residential development is a much higher and better use than office uses that dominate the locality.

Existing at Waterloo Business Park are a range of commercial business, as well as a childcare centre and gym. The site’s vacancy rate sits at 11%, which is predicted to increase with time. In this context, the site is underutilised and not optimising its full potential, given it is strategically located adjacent to Macquarie Park Metro.

In due course, Goodman will transfer the management and ownership of the site to an established BTR operator.