Six thousand Kiwis can expect to find employment when a major, local ‘shovel-ready’ project, is completed, Stephen Hughes, CEO of Drury South Crossing, contends.
“We have multinational executives queuing at the country’s door to develop new operations and jobs here [in New Zealand]… There are relatively few sites left in the Auckland region which can accommodate this scale of operation and it has been encouraging to see that local and international businesses are looking to invest at this level – which will be an essential part of the region’s economic recovery.”
With construction set to begin early next year, 30ha of sites have already been sold for the (expected) 361-hectare, mixed-use Drury South Crossing development in South Auckland. The project will also include housing for 2,000 people by its estimated completion date of 2027.
Mr Hughes says, while food suppliers are among those most interested to set up shop, interest has come from a diverse range of sectors, even extending to US film studios looking to develop sound stages and production facilities.
“The agricultural sector is seeing strong growth potential for New Zealand branded products as the pandemic stretches supplies around the world… [we’re] seeing is a need from local food producers to store large volumes of export ready product,” he adds.
“We need to create new infrastructure and manufacturing opportunities to provide New Zealanders with some control and certainty over their future… our geographic isolation is a clear competitive advantage and we are going to need more than international students and tourists to restart the economy.”