Bob Ell: Leda Group founder buys giant Coomera site in Gold Coast’s largest ever land sale

Plans by billionaire Bob Ell to build 4000 homes in the heart of Coomera have divided the community, backed by the city’s planning boss but opposed by outraged environmentalists.

Plans by billionaire Bob Ell to build 4000 homes in the heart of Coomera have been backed by the city’s planning boss but outraged environmentalists.

Mr Ell and his son Robert have bought a 161ha at George Alexander Way and Cunningham Dr in a multi-sale transaction on April 28 for nearly $200 million in what’s understood to be the Gold Coast’s biggest ever land deal.

Wildlife Queensland Gold Coast Branch president Sally Spain warned the development would have a disastrous impact on the koala population.

Map of Coomera Quarter, a 161ha site on the Gold Coast which has been bought by developer Bob Ell and LEDA Group. Picture: Supplied by LEDA.

“The fate of (our) once prolific koala population on (the Gold Coast) has been obvious for years,” she said.

However city planning boss Cr Cameron Caldwell welcomed the project.

This site, together with the broader Coomera town centre location has been long identified for urban development,” he said.

“Coomera is an important centre of activity within our city and we have seen the beginnings of its emergence over the past decade.

“The residential component provides critical housing supply to the Gold Coast market.”

Mr Ell has already met with the federal government to obtain environmental approvals.

$200m: Developer’s plans revealed after Coast’s largest ever land sale

A veteran developer and his son have paid close to $200m for a vast chunk of prime residential property at Coomera in what’s understood to be the Gold Coast’s biggest ever land deal.

Developer Bob Ell, 78, and his son Robert settled the $194.7m purchase of three lots totalling 161ha at George Alexander Way and Cunningham Dr in a multi-sale transaction on April 28.

All three lots in the busy Coomera-Pimpama corridor are categorised as vacant residential land, but span several zonings including high-density residential.

The site, known as Coomera Quarter, sits between the Coomera Rivers State School and the heavy rail line, south of Pimpama State Secondary College.

The site is zoned for 4000 dwellings and Leda has already met with the federal government to obtain environmental approvals.

Mr Ell described the site as “the Gold Coast’s last key residential” parcel and confirmed he planned to immediately move to develop it.

Mr Ell said his proposed development would be critical to reducing stress on the city’s housing market which has been dogged by a lack of supply, driving up the price of property.

“We bought this land because we believe in Queensland that it is good land,” he said.

“We understand that there is a problem with housing (on the Gold Coast) and (we), like Harry Triguboff have been getting screwed over for 20 years in New South Wales.

“We are trying to deliver housing in northern New South Wales and governments need to have an inward look at why the land is not being put on the market while here in Queensland we are willing and able to develop this land if governments get behind us to immediately get the approvals available.

“We are now holding in excess of 16,000 lots of land for sale ready to go if any council member, state member or federal member wants to help us get land on the market.”

Bob Ell

The Ells bought the site through company CD No. 1, which is held by their development company Leda.

The deal was brokered by agent Paul Noonan, Queensland managing director of global real estate giant JLL, his colleagues Seb Turnbull and Jakes Burrowes and lawyer Johnathan East of HWL Ebsworth over a nine-month period.

Mr Noonan said the site would be key to the city’s housing needs in the coming decade.

“This is a key land holding in the Coomera precinct and one of the largest and last remaining future supply sites in the entire region,” he said.

“This will be a crucial piece of land to service the northern Gold Coast in the decade to come.”

The site was sold by Coomera Resorts, previously known as Polaris, whose Japanese parent company Hokojitsugyo purchased it as part of a 370ha parcel in 1989.

The company had a buying spree throughout 1990 that included purchases from mortgagees and gave it control of 757ha. It planned, but never started, a major residential resort larger than Sanctuary Cove.

The sale is of the land is understood to be the largest in the city’s history.

Part of the original parcel has since been developed into the Coomera Town Centre.

If Mr Ell’s development submission is to succeed, it will have to differ greatly from one filed by the previous owner, which was to be the city’s second biggest residential development, dubbed Coomera Woods.

That 3722-title estate was sunk by the federal government over concerns it would have meant the destruction of 135ha of koala habitat.

The residential development will neighbour the $1.5bn Foxwell health precinct development which is expected to begin construction next year, amid a multi-billion dollar wave of health and commercial projects in Coomera.

It is Mr Ell’s second major property move in the city's far north in the past year.

In May 2022, he sold his weekend farm retreat at Pimpama for $20.46m.

The sale means the billionaire Budds Beach resident now owns the bulk of developable greenfield housing land in the greater Gold Coast region, including the Coomera site and the Cobakai Lakes and Kings Forrest precincts on the southern side of the NSW border.

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