By Shelby Brooks
An Officer apple orchard has been sold for $60 million.
Star News understands that Bon View Apple Orchard was sold in May this year and was the last farm to be bought for housing development on Brown Road.
Former Bendigo Bank and Coliban Water director Don Erskine, along with a business partner, bought the land.
The 31.4 hectare site at 373 and 405 Brown Road could make way for about 400 lots, RPM selling agent Zaynoun Melhem told realestatesource.com.au.
The sale follows the April sale of 3.56ha of land in Officer which was bought by Satterley for $11.26m.
That land is believed to be able to accommodate approximately 110 dwellings.
Bellevue Orchard, located on the north side of Brown Road, will be the last remaining orchard in the area and share a boundary with the housing estates on the south, which chief executive Nick Russo said they’d work to their advantage.
“What we are trying to do is bring the public in and have people who may be living in that estate and come and pick fruit maybe in the summer and have a cider in the winter, that would be ideal,“ he told the Gazette.
“Our outlook moving forward is understanding that they are coming and asking how can we all enjoy it together.“
The Gazette caught up with Nick for this week’s On the Land feature. Turn to pages 48-49 to learn more.
