Westpoint Corporation

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Westpoint Corporation Pty Ltd was the head company of the Western Australian based Westpoint Group of Companies ("Westpoint Group") which was primarily engaged in property development and raising finance for that purpose. Receivers and managers were appointed in January 2006.

Prior to the collapse the corporation was worth $ AUD 1.7 billion. During 2006 assets of the corporation were being sold.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission is investigating possible action against the directors, Norm Carey, Graeme Rundle, John Dixon and Richard Beck.^[1] ASIC has sought specific information about Westpoint from financial planners whose clients invested in Westpoint and requires planners to provide monthly reports about how they are dealing with Westpoint related client complaints and losses.^[2] In June 2006, ASIC has successfully sought orders against Mr Neil Austin Burnard, whose company was believed by ASIC to be involved in raising substantial funds of more than $100 million for Westpoint from retail investors, mainly in NSW and Queensland, and earned commissions from Westpoint of approximately $6.5 million.^[3]

1 Bayview Apartment - Port Melbourne
2 Heritage Buildings of Bayview Apartment
3 References
4 External Link

[edit] Bayview Apartment - Port Melbourne

Bayview Apartment seen from Williamstown (to the left of the picture)

Bayview Apartment, located on 78-92 Bay Street, Port Melbourne, was a $130 million project value and one of Westpoint's development projects. The land of the apartment block was stretched from east Little Bay Street to west Rouse Street, and from south Dow Street to north Bay Street. It contains 280 apartments including a heritage bank building (1874) and a heritage bluestone warehouse (1864) on the Bay Street and Dow Street respectively. The main part of the Bayview Apartment development is on the old envelope manufacturing plant site. The outlook of both heritage buildings is well preserved. The construction of Bayview Apartment commenced in October 1999, and was completed in July 2003.

Westpoint originally organized two schemes to investors providing either buying the units of the apartment or the promissory notes through the financial planners and its sales network. Today, units in the development still have the market value but investors who bought the promissory notes issued by Westpoint have been told they were unlikely to get their investment back in the Westpoint collapse. 2,000 of the 4,000 investors in the failed Westpoint are suing their financial advisors in one of Australia's biggest class action litigations.^[4]

[edit] Heritage Buildings of Bayview Apartment

Heritage National Bank building became part of the Bayview Apartment

The former National Bank building on 96 Bay Street was constructed in 1874. Tenders were called for this building by Terry and Oakden on the 1st January 1874. By 1874 the rate books recorded the 9 rooms of brick building valued at £250. In 1889, G Jobbins, Architect, undertook the additional of the extra bay to the south in a sympathetic manner.

This building provides an excellent example of an intact bank in the conservative classical style, employing all the correct architectural mouldings of the Italian Renaissance Revival. Also this building provides extremely important streetscape element to Bay Street.

The heritage bank building was integrated as the part of Bayview Apartment development and converted to 12 heritage apartments.

Heritage bluestone warehouse became part of the Bayview Apartment

A large early bluestone warehouse at Dow Street has historic importance as being built by Messrs. Morley and Carrick, important figures in the history of Port Melbourne.

In December 1864 Allotments 6 and 7 contained various wood and iron building owned by Reynolds & Co. in the rate book entry, the name is crossed out and the name Morley & Carrick is penciled in.

The rate book entry for November 1865 has description “Bond’d & Free Store Stabling for 30 horses”. By 1868 the description of the building was “Store Bond & Free Store” and 1870: “Large Bluestone Store”.

The heritage bluestone building was integrated as the part of Bayview Apartment development and converted to 26 heritage apartments.