Packer v Packer as Gretel and James on opposing sides in Potts Point stoush

Sibling rivalry has collided with the most characteristic of Sydney obsessions – housing, development and city views – on the tree-lined streets of Potts Point.

The billionaire children of late media tycoon Kerry Packer, James and Gretel, via their respective property interests, have found themselves linked to opposite sides of a squabble playing out from opposite sides of ritzy Macleay Street.

On the western side of the strip, Melbourne-based developer Time and Place, which is backed by James Packer, is seeking approval for a $100 million proposal to knock down The Chimes building of 80 studio and one-bedroom units and replace it with a taller building of possibly about 34 apartments, including some affordable housing.

Across the road, residents in the 1938 art deco-style Macleay Regis building – where Gretel Packer has snapped up two apartments since 2017 – are miffed about the plan.

The concept plan is at an early stage, and Time and Place has said it is “passionate about redeveloping the site into a high-quality, well-considered development”.

But in a submission on behalf of its shareholders, the board of the Macleay Regis decried as “somewhat astounding” the proposal to “significantly reduce the current long-term and affordable housing stock in Potts Point” by bulldozing the Chimes.

The board said the existing units would be replaced by “exclusive apartments not just for the wealthy but the very wealthy”, while generating a “significant windfall for the developer”.

“Since the lockout laws were instituted in 2014, and the area has become safer, developers have been buying apartment blocks and redeveloping sites in and around Potts Point to create luxury housing for a select few.”

The board was also unhappy about the prospect of the proposed redevelopment blocking views to and from dozens of west-facing homes in the heritage building: “It is essential that the view to this heritage item be preserved as well as views enjoyed from this building towards views of the city of Sydney be maintained.”

Gretel Packer, who is not mentioned in the board’s submission on the proposal, has reportedly been investigating plans to restore the Metro-Minerva Theatre in Potts Point after buying the site from developers for $26 million last year.

Meanwhile, the proposed Chimes development brings together an elite group of property identities. News Corp reported in June that Time and Place had development funding from Packer, and it had previously reported he had taken a 10 per cent stake in the Macleay Street project. Company records have shown Time and Place Chimes Pty Ltd has two directors: Tim Price, founder of developer Time and Place, and Todd Nisbet, a former Crown Resorts executive when it was run by James Packer.

Packer and Nisbet are no strangers to high-stakes development stoushes over lucrative city and harbour views. Both were still tied to Crown when the casino giant and developer Lendlease took the NSW government to court seven years ago in a bid to retain the much-vaunted views of the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House from Packer’s dream Barangaroo casino tower. The drawn-out fight revolved around Crown and Lendlease’s concerns that their vistas would be blocked by development at the future Central Barangaroo precinct (those plans are still being finalised, but that’s another story).

Packer won that battle. Time will tell which side of Macleay Street prevails.

Bentley bump

Controversial Sydney real estate agent Josh Tesolin is known as one of the highest-earning agents in the land, but with his multibillion-dollar business paused, he seems to be switching focus from peddling properties to cars.

Specifically, a gleaming white Bentley Bentayga advertised on Carsales.com as “a true masterpiece” with “all the luxury a vehicle can ask for” and a $260,000 price tag.

Registration details show the 2021 model luxury SUV is owned by Tesolin’s company, Tesolin Consulting. The 30-year-old former Ray White agent and his company were slapped with a four-month licence suspension by the industry regulator in August, pending possible disciplinary action, following numerous allegations of dummy bidding, underquoting and high-pressure sales tactics.

Among claims made by the NSW Office of Fair Trading were more than 100 cases of underquoting and producing false documents for the regulator, all of which came after an almost three-year investigation into Tesolin and his Quakers Hill office.

Tesolin, who has long dominated the Quakers Hill real estate market in the city’s northwestern suburbs, has in the past five years scooped up a swag of industry gongs and accolades at the annual Ray White awards, including as its highest-earning agent. He has said he earned more than $9 million last financial year alone. Despite his suspension, Tesolin was still making a handsome living from the dividends of another real estate business that was not covered by the regulator’s suspension orders.

But he might still need a Bentley bump to his coffers. Tesolin’s push to sell the family silver, er, vehicle, coincided with Fair Trading’s Friday deadline for him to respond to show cause notices explaining why the regulator should not take disciplinary action.

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