Historic Victorian military bases go on major Defense sale – realestate.com.au

Victoria will be the epicenter of a billion-dollar Albanian government real estate deal, with 16 sites across the state set to be divested.

Nationally, 64 properties will be sold in their entirety, while a further three are earmarked for partial sale, with proceeds reinvested in supporting the National Defense Strategy.

The list includes the birthplace of the Royal Australian Air Force at Point Cook, where the military division was founded in 1914.

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It is scheduled for full sale, while the nearby RAAF Williams-Laverton site will be partially divested.

Some of their former assets in the area have already been converted into a new suburban-sized residential and job district now called Williams Landing.

They must also give up high-profile locations in Melbourne, including Victoria Barracks in Parkville, as well as training depots in Sandringham and St Kilda.

The Geelong region will also see a significant sell-off, with the sale of Fort Queenscliff and home of Geelong’s Air Force Cadet Unit, as well as a partial divestment of Swan Island, and the end of the lease of the training ship Barwon.

FULL LIST OF VICTORIAN SITES AVAILABLE FOR SOLD:

Carlton Training Depot – Complete divestment

Maribyrnong Defense Site – Divestment underway

Fort Queenscliff – Complete divestment

Geelong (Air Force Cadet Unit) – Complete divestment

Geelong – Training Vessel Barwon – End of Lease

HMAS Cerberus – Partial Rejection

Kyneton Training Depot – Complete divestment

Latchford Barracks – Complete divestment

Newland Barracks – Complete divestment

RAAF Williams – Laverton – Partial disposal

RAAF Williams – Point Cook – Complete divestment

Repatriation Clinic – St Kilda Rd – Complete Rejection

Sandringham Training Depot – Complete divestment

St Kilda Training Depot – Complete divestment

Swan Island (Geelong area) – Partial divestment

Victoria Barracks Melbourne – Complete divestment

The planned sell-off follows the publication of the Defense Estate Audit, which found the country’s military was “constrained by the weight of its past when it comes to managing the estate”.

“The current estate footprint includes numerous legacy sites without a clear ongoing link to current or future opportunities,” the audit said.

“Urgent interventions are needed to correct the unsustainable trajectory resulting from decades of delayed decisions on contentious wealth issues.”

RAAF Base Williams at Point Cook was the original home of the Australian Air Force in 1921.

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A press release on the Minister of Defense website today noted that some of the sites are of historical interest and that the Albanian government would preserve and improve public access to them.

“The Albanian government is committed to ensuring that the Australian Defense Force has the facilities and capabilities it needs to keep Australians safe,” the press release said.

“This means we must make the tough decisions to transition to a modern defense estate that reflects the needs of our nation and our defense workforce.”

The former Maribyrnong Regulation Base is also on the list, but was already on the verge of disposal and was put on the market in 2018 – with past suggestions it could eventually house around 6,000 new homes.

In 2017, a Chinese developer had proposed a $2.5 billion plan for the site.

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