CORA project offered to market

The long-awaited CORA (Cape Otway Road Australia) project is up for sale, with what is described as a “investment-ready, planning-approved precinct” to be released to the market via an expression of interest campaign.

Initially valued at $500 million, CORA is slated to be built on a 190-hectare site near Modewarre.

More than $17 million has been invested over eight years in enabling works, planning, and design, including significant state and federal government contributions.

CORA received approval from the Victorian government in October 2020 and was slated to begin construction in 2021.

Its opening date was set for 2024, but the first delays to the project were made public in January 2022 and a revised opening date was eventually set for 2027, with developers Cape Otway Elite Sports Retreat also citing the impacts of the pandemic at the time.

Legendary French tennis coach Patrick Mouratoglou signed an agreement in January 2024 to replicate his flagship tennis academy in Nice at CORA and start teaching students within three years.

In September last year, CORA announced it had again amended its opening date to 2029.

The Comprehensive Development Zone land for the project is structured into five integrated precincts that can be delivered in stages, with stage one to be anchored by luxury lodges.

“CORA was always conceived as a global destination for sport, wellness and education, designed to service both the rapid economic growth of the Australia-Pacific region and Australia’s strongest domestic markets,” CORA co-founder Daryl Pelchen said this week.

“From the outset, the masterplan was deliberately structured to aggregate a mosaic of complementary uses across a single site, creating a diversified and resilient platform with multiple revenue streams. Importantly, this next step is a natural progression within the planning and delivery framework established from day one.

“Through the collective efforts of government, community, advisors and partners, CORA is now genuinely investment-ready.”

Commercial real estate agency Cushman & Wakefield is running the EOI process.

“This is a rare and unrepeatable opportunity,” Cushman & Wakefield chief executive of Australia, New Zealand and North Asia, Noral Wild, said. “CORA has all the ingredients investors look for but so rarely find in one place: scale, flexibility, planning certainty and a globally recognised anchor partner.

“Importantly, it also offers diversification across sport, education, hospitality and tourism, making it a once-in-a-generation chance to redefine how sport, wellness, education and tourism can coexist.”

Mouratoglou said the partnership with CORA was a big move for the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy brand.

“We have always loved Australia, a genuine tennis nation and this partnership is an exciting development for the region, providing educational and career opportunities for young students as well as athletes.

“With over half the Australian adult population showing clear interest in tennis and school programs as well as tennis camps, CORA is the perfect partner to help deliver our vision in Australia and the Pacific, creating the number one tennis school program in the Southern Hemisphere”.