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GUEST OBSERVATION
Australia is allegedly in the midst of a <a href="https://www.gbca.org.au/revolution/" target="_blank">“green building revolution”</a>, powered by the awarding of ratings to developers who build sustainable buildings.
But this brave new world is only a reality in the high-end office blocks of Australia’s central business districts (CBDs). Everywhere else, the pace of progress is much slower. At least, that is what my research into <a href="https://www.envirovoluntarism.info/" target="_blank">more than 70 sustainability tools</a>, both in Australia and overseas, tells me. Let me explain this through one example.
In 2002, the <a href="https://www.gbca.org.au" target="_blank">Green Building Council of Australia</a> (GBCA) was established to “drive the adoption of green building practices through market-based solutions”.
Last week it hosted the <a href="https://www.greencities.org.au/" target="_blank">Green Cities Conference</a>, bringing together the construction industry, policy makers and academics to discuss the way forward in improving the environmental and resource sustainability of buildings and cities in Australia and elsewhere.
The GBCA is particularly proud of its <a href="https://www.gbca.org.au/green-star/" target="_blank">Green Star</a> system, which rates the environmental performance of buildings.
A Green Star revolution in Australia?
The ratings help the construction industry to showcase the environmental credentials of its buildings. In this respect, Green Star is a simple and elegant idea: it allows a building’s environmental performance (in terms of energy, water and material use) to be easily compared with that of other buildings – rather like the energy performance stickers you find on new fridges or cars.
This easy comparability makes these assessment tools very attractive. For developers, investors, owners and occupants alike, it is easy to grasp that a six-star building is somehow better than a four-star one.
The numbers the GBCA presents about its Green Star program are impressive. <a href="https://www.gbca.org.au/green-star/green-star-overview/" target="_blank">More than 7 million square metres</a> of Australia’s built-up space is rated as having high levels of environmental performance. This includes <a href="https://www.gbca.org.au/docs/evolution2013.pdf" target="_blank">18% of all office space</a> in the CBDs of major cities. But what do these numbers actually mean, and are these successes found everywhere, or are they concentrated in certain locations?
Central focus
Green Star is mainly used to label office space in the CBDs of Australia’s cities (those with populations of at least 20,000). Here it has indeed achieved considerable success.
Since the introduction of Green Star in 2003, some 5.3 million square metres of office space was added to the CBDs of Australia’s major cities. Of this, about <a href="https://www.gbca.org.au/green-star/green-star-overview/" target="_blank">2.9 million square metres</a> are now Green Star labelled. That is a success rate of about 50%, which may be considered a very successful outcome.
But what is labelled, exactly?
Green Star awards three levels of labels: “Best Practice” (4 stars), “Australian Excellence” (5 stars), and “World Leadership” (6 stars). Green Star does not report on how many buildings or square metres fit into each category, but some other labelling tools may give some insight. The partly mandatory <a href="https://www.nabers.gov.au/public/WebPages/Home.aspx" target="_blank">National Australian Built Environment Rating System</a> awards its highest labelling category to just <a href="https://www.nabers.gov.au/public/WebPages/DocumentHandler.ashx?docType=3&amp;id=105&amp;attId=0" target="_blank">8% of buildings</a>. Meanwhile, Green Star’s counterpart in the United States, <a href="https://www.usgbc.org/leed/" target="_blank">LEED</a> (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), only awards <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?id=qCH00bF-4MYC&amp;printsec=frontcover&amp;dq=the+world%27s+greenest+buildings&amp;hl=en&amp;sa=X&amp;ei=yaUVU-y-NcTUkwWZjYHgCw&amp;ved=0CDYQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&amp;q=the%20world's%20greenest%20buildings&amp;f=false" target="_blank">6% of its labels</a> in its highest category.
If the vast majority of buildings are not hitting the highest sustainability standards, then are we really witnessing a revolution?
A levelling-out of growth
It should also be kept in mind that these are <a href="https://www.gbca.org.au/uploads/170/34474/A_decade_of_green_building_.pdf" target="_blank">accumulated numbers</a>. If they are unpacked as yearly “successes”, the picture presented by the GBCA changes a little more. The below figure gives some insight.
<a href="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/44175/area14mp/g928847f-1395118670.jpg"><img src="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/44175/width668/g928847f-1395118670.jpg" alt=""></a>
Source: GBCA
Since 2008, the uptake of Green Star labelling has levelled out. Before then, it was increasingly sought by developers for buildings they would develop in the future, but this no longer seems to be happening.
This is not that surprising. With the introduction of a tool such as Green Star it is to be expected that many early adopters try it out in the first years when they can be pioneers, and be rewarded as such. It is much harder to get the later adopters on board.
If 18% of the office market represents the Green Star system’s saturation point, then this does not bode well for the revolution’s future. On the current trend we can expect the levelling-out of actually built Green Star buildings to begin in 2016.
This will leave more than 80% of the Australian office market untouched by well over a decade of “Green Star revolution”.
Outside the office
Australia, of course, has more than just office buildings. The total residential building stock is estimated at about 1.5 billion square metres, based on <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/census_services/getproduct/census/2011/quickstat/0?opendocument&amp;navpos=220" target="_blank">9 million dwellings</a> at an average for new builds of around <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/featurearticlesbyCatalogue/8BB3F6B866BC35CECA2578A000153026?OpenDocument" target="_blank">220 square metres</a> (historical averages were lower, which brings down the total). This dwarfs the total commercial space, which is about <a href="https://www.nabers.gov.au/public/WebPages/DocumentHandler.ashx?docType=3&amp;id=105&amp;attId=0">27 million square metres</a>.
In this context, Green Star’s impact has been marginal at best. The 7 million square metres of Green Star labelled space represents less than 0.5% of the total.
In other words, outside Australia’s major business districts, green building labelling has not caught on, despite the GBCA’s attempts to move into these markets. The much-touted revolution has not spilled over from the CBDs to the rest of the country.
What makes a revolution?
Green Star is but one of the many tools that I have studied through which the construction industry seeks to foster more sustainable practice. This is a revolution in itself. Like Green Star, these tools have achieved some successes in niche markets, but have not achieved overall sweeping results.
Also like Green Star, these tools have received both <a href="https://urbansustainabilityresilience.wordpress.com/2014/02/08/trends-in-governance-for-urban-sustainability-and-resilience/#comments" target="_blank">accolades and criticisms</a>. The 7 million square metres of labelled office space undoubtedly represents a success for Green Star. But has it caused the revolution in the Australian construction industry that the GBCA claims?
It depends, of course, on your definition of “revolution”. In 2007 Apple introduced the iPhone, which clearly revolutionised communication. <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-02-01/half-of-australian-adults-now-own-a-smartphone/4494892" target="_blank">More than half of all Australians</a> now own a smartphone. In 2003, the GBCA introduced Green Star, which now covers 0.5% of Australia’s built environment. Clearly some revolutions happen faster than others.
To really kickstart the green building revolution in Australia, other market segments need their own tools like Green Star. This will require more leadership in the industry, in figuring out how to tempt the developers and owners of other building types to join in.
I hope that the Green Cities Conference inspires its participants to move the green building revolution beyond Australia’s CBDs, and past the commercially attractive top end of the construction market.
Jeroen van der Heijden is Assistant Professor of Environmental Governance at Australian National University.
Jeroen receives funding from the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research.
This article was originally published on <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>. 
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jheijden-cBMeUt3AbR

Green building revolution? Only in high-end new CBD offices

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Making Australian cities truly resilient to extreme events is being held back by archaic planning. The majority of buildings don’t fall under new sustainability and resilience regulations, meaning private initiatives have to pick up the slack. It might sound trivial, but more resilient buildings could have prevented losses during events such as Queensland’s devastating 2011 floods.
Recently the journal Urban Policy and Research published a remarkable issue. It featured <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/cupr20/31/3#.Upapw9ISaSo" target="_blank">opinion pieces</a> on the state of Australian cities and their future by <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/08111146.2013.832843" target="_blank">Anthony Albanese</a> (MP), <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/08111146.2013.832844" target="_blank">Greg Hunt</a> (Environment Minister), <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/08111146.2013.832846" target="_blank">Scott Ludlum</a> (Senator) and <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/08111146.2013.832845" target="_blank">Kirsty Kelly</a> (CEO, Planning Institute of Australia).
They stated that Australian cities need to become more sustainable, more liveable, and more resilient over the coming decades.
The <a href="https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/infrastructure/pab/files/Our_Cities_National_Urban_Policy_Paper_2011.pdf" target="_blank">broader discussion on the strength of Australian cities to date</a> is constructive and points in the right direction. But the proposals on the table have two latent defects. One is an unwillingness to tackle the issue of “<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grandfather_clause" target="_blank">grandfathering</a>” existing buildings into new regulation. The other is an over-reliance on collaboration between government, businesses and citizen groups.
The problem of grandfathering
<a href="https://www.unhabitat.org/pmss/listItemDetails.aspx?publicationID=3387" target="_blank">Around the globe</a> the traditional approach to strengthening cities is by introducing new regulation. In Australia this is evidenced by the ratcheting up of the <a href="https://www.abcb.gov.au/about-the-national-construction-code" target="_blank">National Construction Code</a>. There is however a major problem that new regulations cannot address.
Existing buildings are normally exempted from new regulations. This process is referred to as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grandfather_clause" target="_blank">grandfathering</a>. Existing buildings make up the majority of buildings in a city (about 98%), and they are replaced very slowly (about 1% year). Grandfathering in effect allows for the maintenance of weak links in achieving truly sustainable, liveable and resilient cities.
This problem of grandfathering has been picked-up by, among others, the <a href="https://www.buildingresilience.org.au/" target="_blank">Australian Resilience Taskforce</a>. It claims that much financial harm and possibly even casualties could have been prevented from the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010%E2%80%932011_Queensland_floods" target="_blank">Queensland floods</a> (2010/2011) if only existing buildings had been more resilient (read: if they had complied with current-day building regulation).
Similar issues come to the fore in discussions about the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/15/nyregion/new-building-codes-passed-after-lessons-from-hurricane-sandy?_r=0">devastation caused by hurricane Sandy that hit New York</a> in 2012.
Read more over page
 

<hr class="system-pagebreak">
 
Overcoming the weak link
<a href="https://www.envirovoluntarism.info/EnviroVoluntarism_ArrangementsStudied">All over the world</a> citizen groups, businesses and governments seek to overcome this weak link in urban sustainability, liveability and resilience. In Australia they are particularly active in <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08111146.2013.769156#.UZ_bMtK1HLc">doing so</a>. Below are some of the most impressive efforts.
In 2010, owners of Sydney-based apartment units came together. They wanted to install solar panels on their existing strata-buildings to reduce their electricity bills, but Australian law stood in their way for doing so.
They started <a href="https://www.greenstrata.com.au/">Green Strata</a> and brought their problem to the attention of the City of Sydney. The City provided them with a small grant. This has helped Green Strata to grow out to an internationally recognised organisation that provides a wealth of information to strata-owners.
They have shown that strata-buildings can save more than <a href="https://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/vision/sustainability/sustainable-city-living/sustainable-apartments">80% of their communal energy consumption</a>, which significantly reduces the energy bill as well as carbon emissions.
In 2003, <a href="https://www.gbca.org.au/green-star/">Green Star</a> was launched by leaders in the construction industry. They wanted to show their buildings outperform others in terms of sustainability.
To give insight into the relative performance of a building they developed a labelling scheme. For instance, a six-star rated building shows that it outperforms a three-star one. Now, building tenants are willing to <a href="https://www.ucei.berkeley.edu/PDF/seminar20090130.pdf">pay higher rents</a> for buildings with positive labels, especially for commercial buildings.
Green Star has achieved considerable success in improving the sustainability of new commercial buildings in Australia, with <a href="https://www.gbca.org.au/green-star/green-star-overview/">7.2 million square metres</a> already labelled. Green Star is now moving into the market for <a href="https://www.gbca.org.au/green-star/green-star-performance/">existing buildings</a>.
In terms of government, the City of Sydney started the <a href="https://www.sydneybetterbuildings.com.au/">Better Buildings Partnership</a> in 2011, seeking to reduce the carbon emissions of Sydney’s 14 major property owners’ existing buildings. Together these produce about 25% of Sydney’s emissions, mostly due to energy inefficiency.
As a result of being informed on energy efficiency by the City of Sydney and by sharing information among each other, these 14 property owners have saved <a href="https://www.sydneybetterbuildings.com.au/2013/energy-efficient-buildings-save-landlords-25-million/">$25 million</a> on their energy bills, and reduced emission of up to <a href="https://www.sydneybetterbuildings.com.au/2013/energy-efficient-buildings-save-landlords-25-million/">70%</a>.
Strong cities through collaboration?
In the above examples, and in <a href="https://www.envirovoluntarism.info/EnviroVoluntarism_ArrangementsStudied">many others</a>, “collaboration” is the key-word in how citizen groups, businesses and governments seek to address the weak link in urban sustainability, liveability and resilience. But <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2204524">is collaboration enough</a>?
My<a href="https://regnet.anu.edu.au/content/voluntary-environmental-governance-project"> international research</a> shows it is not, and shows that there is an <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11077-013-9184-z">over-reliance on collaboration</a>. I see two shortcomings in collaboration for stronger cities.
First, they are often small innovations in a predominantly conservative industry. Action is needed to scale up these initiatives.
Second, they are isolated pockets of sustainability, liveability and resilience. Linking them could make the whole greater than the sum of its parts. Regulation and coordination may be required.
Here I see a role for government unaddressed in Australia’s <a href="https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/infrastructure/pab/files/Our_Cities_National_Urban_Policy_Paper_2011.pdf">National Urban Policy</a>. Government should support and link local collaborations, draw lessons from these and communicate those, and replicate best practices throughout the nation.
Yet, to achieve truly strong cities we need to stop grandfathering existing buildings and make them subject to current-day regulations. The collaborations show that the future-proofing of existing buildings saves costs.
When disaster strikes, it may save lives as well.


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Jeroen van der Heijden is Assistant Professor of Environmental Governance at <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/australian-national-university">Australian National University</a>
Jeroen van der Heijden receives funding from the Dutch Organisation for Scientific Research. He is affiliated with the Regulatory Institutions Network (RegNet) at the Australian National University, and the Law School at the University of Amsterdam.
This article was originally published at <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/towards-truly-resilient-cities-stop-being-soft-on-old-buildings-21071">original article</a>.
 
 
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Towards truly resilient cities: stop being soft on old buildings

One of the primary characteristics of a university campus is its location in high-amenity, well-connected suburbs, as it caters to the thousands of students who walk through its doors every day.

It’s this enviable central location that makes Hamton’s newest neighbourhood so appealing to discerning buyers. The 1.6-hectare site was formerly home to a University of Melbourne campus.

This relocation paved the way for <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/hamton">Hamton</a>, best known for their $3 billion joint venture development Moonee Valley Park, a vibrant new residential community emerging around the Moonee Valley Racecourse.

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<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/scotch-hill-gardens-hawthorn-147-robinson-road-hawthorn-vic-3122">Scotch Hill Gardens</a> benefits from excellent transport connections and local amenities, further enhanced by the revitalisation of Bills Street delivered as part of the development. Thanks to its history as a university campus, the site is within five minutes of Glenferrie and Auburn Villages and 10 minutes to Kooyong Station.

In addition, the site lies within the prestigious Scotch Hill catchment, which includes highly sought-after educational institutions such as Scotch College, Bialik, and Auburn Primary and Auburn High. This makes it an attractive location for both young families and working professionals.

Understanding that the location would appeal to owner-occupiers, particularly rightsizers and downsizers, Hamton focused on creating a collection of residences tailored to this demographic. The design prioritised community over density, with a series of low-rise buildings nestled within nature.

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The development retains 77 established trees on the site and will add a further 151, creating a unique topography visible from the upper levels of the building. A collaboration between placemaking specialists Woods Bagot and landscape architect Tract, the design dedicates over 40 percent of the 1.6-hectare site to landscaped green open space, seamlessly woven between the low-rise buildings.

Landscaping subtly defines boundaries between public and private zones, ensuring a harmonious blend of spaces.

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Inspired by nature, the masterplan reflects the organic formations of lily pads on a pond, discreet yet interconnected, sitting lightly within their context. Following the principles of “nature-based cities,” the site integrates nature, amenity, wellness, and community.

This commitment to nature complements the already well-established landscape nearby. Adjacent to Gardiners Creek, the site offers both recreational and ecological benefits, while the Yarra River trails, Patterson Reserve, and Hawthorn Velodrome, further enhance the area’s outdoor amenities.

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Residents will have access to a range of facilities, including a bathhouse with wellness amenities, a gym, co-working spaces, and communal dining and lounge areas.

Hamton will announce a builder in the coming months. Demolition of the old Campus is underway with construction on the first stage, anticipated to commence early 2026.&nbsp;

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Joel Robinson

Scotch Hill Gardens, a new life for the former University of Melbourne Hawthorn Campus

Brisbane-based developer Red &amp; Co. is venturing into the Gold Coast apartment market, spending $8 million on a vacant site in Varsity Lake.

The plan is to developer 156 apartments on the 2,857sqm, 22 Lake Street site, near Varsity Central Park.

Colliers Queensland Residential Development Sites Director Troy Linnane said Colliers had been &nbsp;working closely with Red &amp; Co. to help them secure their first Gold Coast site, with this site offering a great opportunity due to its location and existing approval.&nbsp;

“This off-market transaction highlights the value of strong market knowledge and relationships, we were able to align the right buyer with the right site given the relationships we have with many active &nbsp;developers seeking sites across the SEQ market,” Linnane said.&nbsp;

“Those groups with in-house construction capability or strong builder alliances are leading market activity as they are best positioned to deliver projects in the current market."

Linnane said with&nbsp;confidence strengthening in 2025, they are seeing increased competition for prime development sites.

“Developers are actively seeking well-located sites, to take advantage of the under supply of &nbsp;apartment stock and the significant uplift in revenues due to strong buyer demand."

<img alt="22 Lake St" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="fcd9176e-4e38-4519-a868-0748419c1d2b" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/22_Lake_Street_001.jpg?VersionId=Z7tUSkVLqv8qf.JTyMXmzasxvudP_u2p" />

Colliers Queensland Residential Site Sales Executive Jackson Robinson said the transaction reflected confidence in the market and increasing demand for well-located, DA-approved sites to develop into &nbsp;housing.&nbsp;

“Red &amp; Co. recognised the depth of unmet demand for well-priced apartment stock on the Gold &nbsp;Coast, particularly in sought-after suburbs like Varsity Lakes, which offers excellent connectivity, expansive views and close proximity to major employment and education hubs,” Robinson said.&nbsp;

There will be a mix of one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments, with views over&nbsp;Lake Orr and out to Burleigh Headland and the Hinterland, with additional outlooks north towards the Broadbeach skyline.&nbsp;

Red &amp; Co., led by co-founders Keiran Foster and David Laverty, have previously completed several developments across Brisbane.

Red & Co.’s first acquisition on the Gold Coast demonstrates increasing  confidence in the Gold Coast market

Red & Co. plots new Varsity Lake apartments

There’s no slowing down Gold Coast builder-developer&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/immerse-projects">Immerse Projects</a>.

Led by construction industry veteran John Kearney, the developer has made its move into the Brisbane apartment market, securing a prime site on Sylvan Road in Toowong.

It’s a location filled with nostalgia for Kearney, who studied at the nearby University of Queensland.

"It feels like a full circle moment," Kearney told Apartments.com.au.&nbsp;

“I spent many nights at the Regatta Hotel just down the road — as have most people in Brisbane. It’s one of the city’s most well-known hotels, and with several cafes, restaurants, and a CityCat stop nearby, it’s become an even more attractive place to live.”

Kearney describes Toowong as a suburb with real depth.

"The suburb attracts everyone, from students to retirees, and that's what makes it interesting."

He also noted the opportunity to take advantage of significant view corridors from the new development site: across Toowong Memorial Park, north to the city, and east along the Brisbane River.

CBRE’s Will Carman and John Nucifora brokered the sale of the 1,760 sqm site, citing strong demand for strategically located development opportunities in Brisbane’s inner suburbs.

"Its proximity to transport, retail, and educational facilities made it an opportunity of strong interest to the broader development community," Carman said.

<img alt="22-24 Sylvan Road" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="49eb466f-69dc-4790-8d50-5173d0cf104a" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/22-24%20Sylvan%20%20Rd%20Toowong_Markups.jpg?VersionId=u4_IGzpYLPFfAZSsgCZynov3bm7umwJ." />

Nucifora said the acquisition reflects confidence in <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/toowong-qld-4066">Toowong</a>, and more broadly Brisbane, as a market of strength for integrated builder developer groups.

"Those with an integrated model, or with strong existing relationships with builders have continued to be at the forefront of development acquisitions over the past two-year period."

Kearney has long operated Greyburn Constructions, and recently expanded into multi-residential development, with great success. They've delivered a new project in Kirra, and they're currently working towards completion at&nbsp;Ombre Robina. Then they have a new project in Kirra, on Haig Street.

They will submit a development application for Toowong later this year.&nbsp;

It’s a location filled with nostalgia for Kearney, who studied at the nearby University of Queensland.



First look: Immerse Projects moves into Brisbane apartment market with Toowong site acquisition

A track record of delivering new projects not just across the Sunshine Coast, but in <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/bokarina-qld-4575">Bokarina</a> specifically, gave builder-developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/gardner-vaughan-group">Gardner Vaughan Group</a> (GVG) all the IP needed to make Bask even more refined.&nbsp;

After completing Zinc Bokarina last year - positioned directly adjacent to Bask - GVG leveraged years of feedback from original purchasers and current residents, enabled by its community-focused approach and ongoing engagement.

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The feedback pointed to two clear themes: larger apartments with more bedrooms, and amenity suited to the active downsizer.

GVG then designed <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/bask-bokarina-38-bokarina-boulevard-bokarina-qld-4575">Bask</a> - a collection of one to four-bedroom apartments - tailored to the end user: local downsizers or those seeking more spacious holiday homes than a compact getaway by the beach.

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A pool was essential, but a lap pool wasn’t. Instead, GVG designed a heated plunge pool, ideal for a refreshing dip. Key to the amenity offering were shared spaces designed to foster community connection. These include shaded garden areas with barbecue facilities, a firepit zone, and a communal herb and vegetable garden.&nbsp;

There’s also a fully equipped gym, designed specifically for the lifestyle exerciser.&nbsp;

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Another key insight was the desire not just for pet-friendly living - but for a development that embraces it. GVG listened and installed a dedicated dog wash bay, perfect for rinsing off after a trip to the dog-friendly Bokarina Beach, just 250 metres from Bask's front door.

Having already helped establish a vibrant lifestyle precinct with retail and amenity at Zinc, GVG is now expanding the offering with more street-level retail, set to complement the existing restaurants, wine bars, convenience, and specialty stores in the precinct.

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Bask represents the final new residential offering in the Bokarina Beach precinct. The two buildings, Mydas and Caretta, have been cleverly designed so that every apartment captures glimpses of either the Pacific Ocean, Lake Kawana, or the Glass House Mountains.&nbsp;

Construction is already underway, with GVG expecting residents to move in by summer 2026/27.

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How GVG is designing for the active downsizer at Bask Bokarina

With completion now on the horizon, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-queensbridge-building-southbank-90-queensbridge-street-southbank-vic-3006">The Queensbridge Building</a> in Southbank is beginning to reveal the depth of its amenity and residential design offering ahead of a planned move-in from late 2025.

Developed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/time-place">Time &amp; Place</a> in partnership with MaxCap Group and construction giant&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/builders/hickory">Hickory</a>, the 65-level tower recently topped out at 208 metres, marking a major milestone for the precinct-shaping project.&nbsp;

Once complete, the development will deliver 350 apartments and a 188-room boutique hotel as part of the Collection by TFE Hotels.

We recently visited The Queensbridge display suite, and a recently completed display apartment within the building, and spoke to Time &amp; Place Sales Director, James Herbert, to find out more about the project.

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Herbert says there are two key points of difference with The Queensbridge.

"The first we call 'modern nostalgia', or the feeling of home. It is one of the reasons we appointed <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/flack-studio">Flack Studio</a> to handle the interiors. We studied some of Flack's most famous residential homes, and we've created a series of design moments, from the edge of the island bench to the door hardware and the materiality of the homes."

Apartments range from one to three bedrooms, with current pricing starting from $632,000. Most one-bedroom layouts include integrated study nooks, while select two and three-bedroom configurations feature dual bathrooms and generous storage solutions.

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Herbert says the second key point of difference is their&nbsp;commitment to community and experience.

"That's one of the reasons why we took our common amenity spaces and we've brought them together in a concept we call Queensbridge Clubhouse.

"We have all of the typical common amenity facilities you would see in any luxury hotel or building throughout the world like a swimming pool, steam room, gym, and outdoor spaces, but we've also got an amazing co-working space,&nbsp;a private izakaya, and a ground-floor dining space."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=1504 project_image_fid=272090]

Herbert says the community experience was about bringing&nbsp;people together, so Time &amp; Place has built a bespoke app, and they're appointing an experienced director, to manage the spaces.

"We believe living in the urban environment in a building like this, is about an idea of togetherness, and accessing the very best that Melbourne has to offer."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=1504 project_image_fid=272097]

Positioned at 90 Queens Bridge Street, The Queensbridge Building benefits from its location at the confluence of Melbourne CBD, South Melbourne, the Yarra River, and the city’s Arts Precinct.&nbsp;

Residents will be within a 15-minute walk of over a dozen green spaces, world-class sports and cultural venues, and South Melbourne Market

The inclusion of the Hannah St. Hotel adjacent to the residential lobby also introduces a unique layer of amenity, providing additional hospitality experiences that extend the lifestyle value of the precinct.

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Jeroen van der Heijden

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Jeroen van der Heijden

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