Catholic Church in South Australia buys $24m Greenhill Rd property for Catholic Education South Australia (CESA)

The Catholic Church has splashed out millions of dollars for an office building on the city fringe. Find out what it’s planning to do with the site.

Catholic Education SA will move to the building next year.

The Catholic Church has splashed out $24m on a new home for its education and schooling body.

Catholic Education South Australia (CESA), which oversees the state’s catholic schools, will move from its current home in Thebarton to the two-level building on Greenhill Rd in Parkside.

It will lease the space from the building’s new owner the Catholic Archdiocese of Adelaide.

The off market deal was brokered by McGees Property’s Andrew Wilson and Phillip Joncheff on behalf of vendors Australasian Property Developments and Realside Investments Fund ahead of the departure of the building’s main tenant Viterra.

Current tenant Letcher Moroney Chartered Accountants will remain at the building following the sale.

CESA executive director Neil McGoran at CESA’s current offices on George St in Thebarton. Picture: Russell Millard

Industry sources confirmed a sale price of $24m had been agreed for the building, which is located between George St and Glen Osmond Rd, and comprises of about 5000sq m of net lettable area. The 6065sq m corner site has three street frontages and a mix of open-air and undercroft car parks.

CESA executive director Dr Neil McGoran said the organisation would relocate to the building next year.

“Set across two levels, Catholic Education’s new head office in Parkside will offer modern facilities, with on-site and off-street carparking available for staff,” he said.

“Following refurbishment and fit-out, it is anticipated our 200-strong Catholic Education office workforce will relocate from the Thebarton office to Parkside by Term 2, 2026.”

Mr Wilson said the sale reflected strong demand from tenants for city fringe sites, as reflected in the Property Council’s latest vacancy figures which showed vacancies in Adelaide’s fringe office markets had tightened from 12 per cent to 10.8 per cent.

“Greenhill Rd continues to attract significant interest, particularly from groups seeking a long-term presence near the CBD,” he said.

“Large-scale buildings with strong parking ratios and multiple frontages are becoming increasingly rare.”

Originally published as Catholic Church in South Australia buys $24m Greenhill Rd property for Catholic Education South Australia (CESA)