The House of Abhinandan Lodha (HoABL) has acquired the American Center in South Mumbai’s Marine Lines locality for more than Rs 56 crore, said people familiar with the matter. The deal was registered earlier Friday.
The seven-storey iconic property, which was part of the US Consulate General, was built in 1968 and used to accommodate residences of US ambassadors in India till the early 1990s. Later, the building was used by the US consulate for administrative purposes.
However, the structure spread over nearly 1,400 sq meters or one-third of an acre has been lying vacant for the past decade after the US consulate shifted from south Mumbai to the business district of Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC).
HoABL plans to develop the land parcel into a super-luxury residential project with sea views of both Marine Drive and Mumbai harbour. This will mark the company’s foray into vertical city-centric developments, the people said.
“The transaction was initiated almost three years ago and was awaiting clearance from both the US and Indian governments. It has been concluded following the approval from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the US embassy,” said one of the persons cited above.
A spokesperson of Consulate General of the United States – Mumbai confirmed the deal without providing any details, while HoABL did not respond to ET’s queries.
According to property consultants, the land parcel is expected to hold development potential of over 60,000 sq ft and generate revenues of Rs 750-800 crore given the premium location.
South and Central Mumbai, home to India’s most expensive apartments, have been playing a key role in the surge in luxury residential property market in India. These micro markets have witnessed many large-ticket transactions involving industrialists, top corporate executives, actors, and sports personalities in the last few years.
The deal for the American Center is the latest in the series of properties sold by the US Consulate General in Mumbai. It sold Washington House on Altamount Road, and Lincoln House in Breach Candy area in south Mumbai in 2012 and 2015, respectively after the consulate shifted to BKC.
HoABL acquired the property through its subsidiary HoABL Infraworld Pvt Ltd.
Over the last four years, the company has undertaken and delivered plotted developments across key property markets of India including Dapoli in Maharashtra and Goa. Around 700 acres are under active development across six other locations spanning Alibaug, Anjarle, Dapoli, Neral, Goa, Ayodhya, which are expected to be delivered in the next two months to two years.
The company recently acquired additional 352 acres in Varanasi, Vrindavan, Shimla, Amritsar, Nagpur, and Khopoli near Mumbai with a total revenue potential of nearly $1 billion.
