This time, at 1 Wilks Street in Caulfield North, the 85-year-old Alma Sports Club will be sold to residential builders and probably be replaced with a medium or high-density apartment project.

Based on depressed land values, the 7100-square-metre site, about nine kilometres south-east of the city, is expected to sell for about $8 million and, following a rezoning, make way for a $100-million plus village with commercial and residential components, according to sources.

The club includes a bowling green, three tennis courts, two squash rooms and a large bar and restaurant. Sale proceeds are expected to fund a relocation or merger with another club that may not necessarily be in Caulfield North.

The listing is the latest in a string of suburban sports facilities offered to residential builders in recent years. In mid-2011, Sydney-based developer Mirvac paid $100 million for the outgoing Eastern Golf Course in Doncaster. The Pakenham Racecourse was also offered to developers last year, and is expected to make way for a $200 million-plus redevelopment.

In 2009, the 100-year old Preston Bowls Club made $3 million selling its long-time home in Preston to a residential developer, and merging with another club further afield in Reservoir. The former Northcote Bowls complex, which also shut down recently, was sold to residential builders.

An Alma Sports Club representative was unavailable when contacted. Stanley Spicer and Rodney Morley, of Rodney Morley Persichetti, acting for the sports club, declined to comment.

Riverside offering

A SEVEN-HECTARE chunk of one of Melbourne's biggest infill projects is for sale. The $700 million River Valley pocket of Sunshine North, 12 kilometres west of the city, will fill a former quarry on a steep escarpment abutting the Maribyrnong River, which is also the Avondale Heights suburb border.

A syndicate of private investors bought the 129-hectare quarry 18 years ago, remediating the land and pushing plans through council since that time. Two subdivisions were released in 2005 and 2009.

The parcel for sale at 265 Duke Street has a permit for a 59-lot subdivision, with scope to increase the density to 110 blocks, according to Biggin Scott selling agent Andrew Egan. It's expected to sell for about $9.5 million.

River Valley is being developed on land recognised by early settlers as the safest spot one could cross the river that divides the western suburbs (and the goldfields of Ballarat) from the rest of Melbourne.

Recently council reopened controversial plans to extend North Road, Avondale Heights into River Valley, in a move that would make amenity (such as Essendon's private schools) more accessible to its residents and ease western suburbs traffic congestion.

South Melbourne rises

ARNO Corporation, the developer behind the contentious plan to build a high-rise apartment complex beside the Camberwell railway station, has unveiled two distinctive apartment projects in South Melbourne.

The most unusual project - Orbis - draws its design from the reflective ''Sky Dish'' sculpture in New York City's Rockefeller Centre, and works by surrealist artist Rene Magritte. To rise eight levels and with 48 flats, Orbis will replace an open-air car park at 97-99 Palmerston Crescent.

Next door, at 147 Eastern Road, Arno will refurbish and extend a rundown office with another apartment tower, Momentum, set to rise eight levels and include 59 flats. The adjoining sites are a block north of Albert Park Lake.

After teaming with state government department VicTrack to redevelop part of the Camberwell train station in 2002, Arno's nine-level, 118-unit mixed complex was approved by the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal in 2010. Despite seeking apartment buyers since that time, it has not progressed with developing the site.

Chris and Marie's lease

THE Carrum Downs property - the victim of Chris and Marie's Plant Farms high-profile collapse last year - is for lease. The 1.1-hectare site at 636 Frankston Dandenong Road is near the end of the $2.5 billion EastLink tollway, which opened in mid-2008, and also near the onramp of the $759 million Peninsula Link freeway, due to open early next year.

Interestingly, the land is zoned for residential use, though the owner has no plans to develop or onsell the site soon, according to Collins Commercial and Industrial agent David Rozendorn, who is seeking a tenant to pay $65,000 annual rent for the former nursery.

The Chris & Marie Plant Farms business reopened this week after going into administration with debts of $3 million last year. Famous for the ''Hello Hello'' advertising catch-cry, the business will trade from two outlets it operated alongside Carrum Downs until last year - in Campbellfield and Monbulk.

Essendon dealership

HAMPTON-BASED builder BPM Corp has paid $5.5 million for a former car dealership site in Keilor Road, Essendon.

The 2819 square-metre site sold with a permit for a 106-unit apartment project marketed by the previous owner as Ess. BPM will redesign a project working within the permitted structure.

The site is the latest in a string of former Keilor Road car dealerships sold to residential developers in recent years. The southern side of the road, where BPM has bought, is more valuable, being classified Essendon rather than North Essendon.

Decades ago Keilor Road was marketed as ''Melbourne's kilometre of cars'' because of its selection of dealerships. Most have now relocated to a high-profile car dealership precinct, Auto Alley, part of billionaire businessman Lindsay Fox's Essendon Airport redevelopment nearby.

CBRE's Mark Wizel and Scott Orchard with Knight Frank's Leigh Morris and Chris Tsolis sold the Keilor Road site to BPM a day before a scheduled auction this week.

BIC HQ fetches $5m

A PROMINENT industrial property abutting EastLink has sold to a developer for $5.1 million. The Keysborough factory at 57-67 Popes Road, the outgoing headquarters of BIC Australia, is spread over four hectares and includes four buildings with 15,000 square metres of space. Facey Industrial Commercial's Matt Rice and Matt O'Dea said the site's high-profile next to EastLink was a key factor in the sale. The factory will be redeveloped as a business and industrial park once BIC vacates.

Taylors Hill water site

THE utility company that found itself in hot water early last month - and urgently needs to find $306 million as a consequence - has sold one of its properties in Melbourne's west.

Melbourne Water is $3.05 million richer after selling a 1.67-hectare development site abutting a facility it controls in Taylors Hill.

Last month it was reported Melbourne Water incorrectly charged users a fee it shouldn't have - then revealed it didn't have the money to repay its customers immediately.

Melbourne Water is the latest utility company recently selling land that once buffered structures such as water towers from residential streets.

Often on valuable ''infill'' land in established suburbs, many of the sites end up making way for higher density townhouse or apartment projects.

A local private investor is believed to be considering a residential subdivision of the Hardware Lane site.

Twitter: @marcpallisco

Email: marcpallisco@gmail.com