The new <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/yarraville-green-42-stephen-street-yarraville-vic-3013">Yarraville Green</a> development in Melbourne's inner west is showing that landscaping can be just as influential as architecture, with buyers responding strongly to the garden-first approach adopted from the outset by developer Excelon Projects and the project's design team.

Excelon appointed Six Degrees Architects and landscape architects SBLA to work collaboratively on the development, with a brief to create "a sustainable, design-led building with a focus on community."

That approach has resonated with buyers. According to Next Chapter Director Tom Hirini, who is leading the sales campaign, the landscaped communal garden has become one of the project's defining features, alongside its boutique scale and European-inspired cluster housing concept.

Local downsizers, right-sizers and established families already living in Yarraville and surrounding suburbs have accounted for the majority of purchasers.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144913 project_image_fid=297740]

Yarraville Green will comprise 53 homes, including apartments and townhomes, arranged around the shared central garden to maximise connections to the landscaped open space. Parking has been moved underground, allowing the ground plane to be dedicated to greenery, pedestrian movement and communal spaces.

The landscape extends well beyond passive planting. Productive garden beds, a pergola, communal gathering spaces, garden sheds and a pet wash have all been integrated into the masterplan, creating spaces designed to encourage everyday interaction between residents.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144913 project_image_fid=297741]

The interiors continue Excelon's focus on craftsmanship, incorporating bespoke elements by Melbourne artisans including leadlight detailing by Adadaz, hand-turned timber hardware by Auburn Woodturning and blown-glass lighting by Ruth Allen.

Sustainability has also been embedded throughout the project, with Yarraville Green targeting an average 7-star NatHERS energy rating through passive design principles, rooftop solar servicing common areas and rainwater harvesting for landscape irrigation.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144913 project_image_fid=297735]

Construction continues to progress at Yarraville Green, with structural works well underway and framing works approaching completion under builder Balmain &amp; Co. The project remains on track for completion in mid-2027.

Apartments at Yarraville Green are currently priced from $625,000, while townhomes start from $1.4 million.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=144913]

Joel Robinson

Garden-led design drives buyer demand at Yarraville Green

National diversified developer Fortis has officially launched Crest &amp; Walker, its latest Brisbane apartment development, with construction now underway on the 20-storey Newstead project.

Award-winning builder BINAH has commenced construction on the Bureau^Proberts-designed building, which will deliver a limited collection of 65 two and three-bedroom apartments on Kyabra Street.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=145922 project_image_fid=373556]

The project marks Fortis' fourth active residential development in Brisbane, following River House, which is nearing completion, alongside projects in New Farm and Hamilton as the national developer continues to expand its South East Queensland pipeline.

Fortis General Manager – Development Queensland Dan Boman said Crest &amp; Walker reflects the developer's long-term commitment to delivering design-led residential projects in Brisbane's established inner-city suburbs.

"We're proud to be strengthening our presence in Brisbane with Crest &amp; Walker, particularly in such a sought-after lifestyle destination as Newstead," Boman said.

"Every Fortis project is shaped by its context, and we approach each one with the respect and care it deserves.

"Our focus is always on creating places that feel connected to their neighbourhood and elevate the everyday experience for residents. Newstead continues to evolve as one of Brisbane's most sought-after urban communities, and Crest &amp; Walker reflects our ambition to contribute meaningfully to that story."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=145922 project_image_fid=373559]

Positioned between Gasworks Plaza and James Street, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/crest-walker-newstead-12-kyabra-street-newstead-qld-4006">Crest &amp; Walker</a> has been designed as a boutique residential address offering privacy and generous living spaces within one of Brisbane's most established lifestyle precincts.

The building features a contemporary brick podium softened by integrated landscaping, while the upper levels are characterised by restrained architecture and enduring materiality. Interiors have been designed to maximise natural light, acoustic performance and long-term liveability.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=145922 project_image_fid=373583]

Residences comprise spacious two and three-bedroom floorplans, with two-bedroom apartments priced from $1.55 million and three-bedroom, half-floor residences from $3.95 million.

Residents will have access to a wellness-focused rooftop featuring a swimming pool, sauna, steam room, landscaped dining spaces and outdoor lounge areas overlooking Newstead and the Brisbane CBD.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=145922 project_image_fid=373571]

Sales are being managed by Slaite Projects, with Fortis expecting strong demand from owner-occupiers seeking a high-quality, design-focused apartment in one of Brisbane's most tightly held inner-city suburbs.

Completion of Crest &amp; Walker is slated for late 2028.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=145922]

Fortis expands Brisbane pipeline with launch of Crest & Walker in Newstead

The enormity of delivering a true skyscraper in Australia's new development market is often overlooked.

It has taken the best part of a decade since plans for Chevron One were first unveiled, but the 41-storey tower is now complete, with residents collecting their keys and moving into what has become one of the Gold Coast's most recognisable new landmarks.

Rising 127 metres above Chevron Island, Chevron One stands almost twice as high as any other building on the island. Its scale places it alongside the trio of towers at Jewel, arguably the last truly significant addition to the central Gold Coast skyline when they were completed around six years ago.

While there are several developments underway around a similar height to Chevron One, they are more concentrated within clusters of the highest towers in the city. The fact Chevron One sits within a developing precinct, looking back at the other high-rise developments in Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach, makes it a different proposition altogether. It will certainly become a reference point on the Gold Coast skyline.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=6515 project_image_fid=68833]

Developer Bensons Property Group is behind the 41-storey tower, which has 229 apartments, along with an exhaustive list of resident amenity spread across what is the largest development site ever assembled on Chevron Island.

The tower has been the talk of the town for years, says Ray White Projects Gold Coast agent Caitlin Rosenboom, who is selling the remaining apartments.

"People have been watching Chevron One go up for years," Rosenboom says, adding that many prospective buyers have been surprised by the scale of the views once they step inside.

"It's only when they walk through a completed apartment that they truly understand the position of the building," Rosenboom says.

"The views are jaw-dropping. Whether you're looking east over the ocean, across Surfers Paradise, along the river systems or out to the hinterland, every level offers something different but equally impressive."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=6515 project_image_fid=360215]

One of Chevron One's defining advantages is its location on the eastern side of Chevron Island on Stanhill Drive, a position which protects the views forever.

"There's only one row of houses between Chevron One and the water, and the height restrictions along the river means views from Chevron One can never be built out,"&nbsp;Rosenboom says.

While new apartment developments continue to emerge across the Gold Coast, Rosenboom says opportunities to secure a completed apartment with this level of outlook are becoming increasingly rare.

"The size of the site is something that would be incredibly difficult to replicate today," she says.

"That's allowed Chevron One to deliver the sort of amenity, open space and resident facilities that very few projects can offer. There are not many completed apartment buildings on the Gold Coast right now that can compete with the combination of scale, quality and amenity."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=6515 project_image_fid=68839]

There's around 2,000 sqm of amenity solely for the use of residents of Chevron One. Club One features a uniquely shaped swimming pool that mirrors the footprint of the building itself, set within a extensively landscaped gardens. There's also an indoor pool and spa, a fully equipped gym with a Pilates room, a yoga garden, a bookable private dining area and lounge that can host up to 30 people, and a 24-hour concierge service.

As for the buyers, Rosenboom is fielding enquiry from everywhere: Sydneysiders and Melburnians looking at the new and off-the-plan market following the changes in the Federal Budget, as well as those looking to relocate, through to South East Queenslanders seeking either a permanent home or a weekender bolthole.

"The Gold Coast lifestyle continues to resonate with people relocating from the southern states, and when they see the views and the quality of what's been delivered at Chevron One, it becomes very easy for them to understand the appeal," Rosenboom says.

A diverse mix of one, two and three-bedroom apartments remain available, with each offering "something a little different", be it the orientation and views, configuration, or level, to suit a wide variety of buyers.

The remaining apartments are ready to inspect in person, by appointment.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=6515]

A decade in the making: Residents to move into Chevron One as construction wraps up

A general rule of thumb in new apartment developments is that the penthouses get the rooftop.

It's a formula that's become commonplace across Australia's apartment market. Residents might have access to a pool, gym or barbecue facilities on a dedicated lower level, but the most desirable outdoor spaces are typically reserved for the highest-priced homes at the top of the building.

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/sherpa-property-group">Sherpa Property Group</a> has taken the opposite approach.

Rather than dedicating the rooftop to a handful of buyers, the Gold Coast developer has made it the centrepiece of its Flourish collection, creating expansive shared spaces from the best vantage point in the building.

The philosophy has reached its most ambitious expression at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/flourish-soleira-palm-beach-1150-1160-gold-coast-highway-palm-beach-qld-4221">Flourish Soleira</a> in Palm Beach, where two rooftop precincts connected by a skybridge will deliver one of the most extensive lifestyle offerings seen in a residential apartment project on the Gold Coast.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150017 project_image_fid=374053]

"We're seeing a clear move toward developments that offer more than just an apartment," Sherpa Group founder Christie Leet said.

"People want spaces that support how they actually live, whether that's working from home, staying active, or spending time with family and friends.

"That's where amenity becomes critical. It's not just about what's included, but how those spaces are designed to be used every day."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150017 project_image_fid=374052]

The breadth of amenity has already attracted buyers across multiple demographics. Younger first home buyers have been drawn to Soleira's one-bedroom apartments, a product rarely delivered in Palm Beach, while families have responded to practical inclusions such as the shallow children's pool adjoining the main lap pool and the extensive communal recreation areas.

Instead of a single rooftop, Soleira delivers two distinct lifestyle zones.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150017 project_image_fid=372547]

The southern rooftop has been dedicated to wellness, featuring a gym, yoga and Pilates studio, work-from-home facilities, a wellness centre, spa, and hot and cold plunge pools.

The northern rooftop focuses on recreation and entertaining, incorporating a heated resort-style pool, private dining rooms, pizza ovens, barbecues, a golf simulator, children's recreation areas, and what is expected to be the Gold Coast's first rooftop basketball court, which will also double as a squash court.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150017 project_image_fid=374054]

Beyond the rooftops, Soleira will introduce 1,500 sqm of curated retail beneath the towers, creating one of Palm Beach's first genuinely mixed-use lifestyle precincts where cafés, restaurants and convenience retail become part of residents' everyday lives.

Sherpa has also retained management rights across the development, allowing it to oversee the long-term operation of the building through a 24-hour concierge model. The developer is also exploring additional revenue streams within the precinct aimed at helping offset ongoing body corporate costs for residents.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150017 project_image_fid=370962]

While Soleira is the largest project Sherpa has delivered, the rooftop-first philosophy has been evolving for several years.

It began with <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/amargo-6-12-sixth-avenue-palm-beach-qld-4221">Flourish Amargo</a>, the first project released under the Flourish brand. Rather than competing at the ultra-luxury end of the market with oversized half-floor and full-floor residences, Sherpa focused on creating lifestyle-driven apartments supported by resort-style shared spaces.

Amargo introduced more than 800 sqm of rooftop amenity, combining wellness facilities, heated pools, entertaining areas, cabanas, pizza ovens and private dining spaces into what was designed as an extension of residents' homes rather than a facility used only occasionally.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=146527 project_image_fid=366550]

That approach continued with Flourish Oasis, where the same amenity-led philosophy was refined into a more boutique development. Strong demand from Sherpa's growing VIP database saw much of the project sold before it reached the broader market, reinforcing buyer appetite for apartment communities centred around shared lifestyle experiences.

Flourish Amargo is slated for completion mid-way-through next year, with Oasis to be delivered by late 2027. Flourish Soleira is expected to complete in 2030.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=150017]

Sherpa takes amenity to the sky as Flourish Soleira captures booming Palm Beach demand

As apartment living continues to evolve across Sydney's growth corridors, the quality and distribution of shared spaces is increasingly shaping how residents experience home. Rather than functioning as add-ons, amenities are being embedded into the daily rhythm of a building, supporting everything from quiet retreat to social interaction, often within a single vertical community.

At <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/aeris-melrose-park-nursery-street-melrose-park-nsw-2114">Aeris</a> in Melrose Park, this approach is resolved through a layered amenity offering that unfolds from ground level through to its upper podium. Developed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/sekisui-house-australia">Sekisui House Australia</a> in partnership with Hankyu Hanshin Properties, the project introduces 468 apartments across two towers and a mid-rise building, positioned at the highest point of the broader masterplan.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=426 project_image_fid=359199]

The amenity experience begins at street level, where two courtyards sit within a landscaped setting that connects residents to the wider network of parks and green spaces. These green spaces are not isolated pockets but part of a wider pedestrian network that links Aeris to the surrounding <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/melrose-park-nsw-2114">Melrose Park</a> precinct, including Central Park, future schools, and the Town Centre opening in July 2026. The result is a transition that moves from public to private without abrupt boundaries, allowing residents to pass through shaded, tree-lined environments before reaching the building itself.

Moving upward, the focus shifts to the level five podium, where the primary communal facilities are concentrated. This space brings together a 16-metre swimming pool, outdoor seating areas, and a communal BBQ zone arranged to take advantage of elevated outlooks. Seating is positioned beneath pergolas, creating pockets of shade that extend the usability of the space throughout the day. The pool edge aligns with views toward the wider district, reinforcing the sense of elevation that defines the project’s positioning.

In the adjacent building, this is complemented by quieter, more contemplative spaces, including an outdoor cinema set within the same level. Positioned to operate primarily in the evening, it introduces a different tempo to the shared environment, shifting from daytime activity to after-hours use without requiring separate zones.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=426 project_image_fid=360299]

The podium also accommodates an intimate private resident gym. Located on the lower levels, it gives residents convenient access to fitness facilities without leaving the building.

Above, the elevated podium sky deck extends the amenity offering, providing additional open-air spaces with elevated outlooks across the surrounding landscape. While more restrained in program, this upper level reinforces the project’s vertical progression, from ground-level greenery to elevated outlook, allowing residents to move between distinct spatial conditions within a single address.

This distribution of amenities reflects a deliberate response to how residents use space across the day. Sekisui House Australia Sales and Marketing Director Peter Kalaf points to the role these shared areas play in shaping buyer demand. Aeris has been conceived as more than a collection of apartments, with the podium pool, gym and outdoor cinema forming part of a broader lifestyle offering that extends the home beyond each individual residence.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=426 project_image_fid=360300]

What distinguishes Aeris is not the inclusion of these elements individually, but how they are arranged in relation to one another. Active, social, and passive spaces are layered vertically rather than separated, allowing residents to choose between them without leaving the building or moving far from their apartment. This proximity supports both routine use, such as a morning swim or evening workout, and more occasional gatherings, whether around the BBQ area or within the cinema setting.

The amenity design also sits within a broader framework of connectivity across Melrose Park. The Melrose Park Town Centre, anchored by Coles and Dan Murphys, features a mix of retail, dining, health and lifestyle offerings, bringing everyday convenience closer to residents. By the end of the year, more than five hectares of parks and open space, equivalent to around seven football fields of green space on residents' doorstep, will further enhance the precinct, allowing the internal facilities at Aeris to operate as an extension of the wider neighbourhood rather than a substitute for it.

Construction at Aeris continues to gather momentum, with ground floor slabs expected to be completed in late 2026 before the first sections of the buildings begin to rise above ground.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=426]

Elevated amenity anchors daily life at Aeris, Melrose Park

Development

<html><body>
A 3,231sqm site in Melbourne's Doncaster is on the market with an existing permit for a 174-apartment mixed use construction.
The potential development, <a href="https://www.realcommercial.com.au/property-land+development-vic-doncaster-502008746" target="_blank">600 Doncaster Road Doncaster</a>, has an existing planning permit for a 12 storey mixed-use development as well as 174 apartments and a ground floor commercial space of 710sqm with 229 car parks. It has been designed by BKK Architects and is not he market through Colliers International’s Hamish Burgess, Peter Bremner and Trent Hobart, in conjunction with Robert Kelly and David Minton of Gorman Kelly.
The development has been designed with a ‘green tree’ theme which extends vertically along a central building.
Hamish Burgess said it is a gateway site opposite Westfield Doncaster, offering a spectacular CBD outlook and equally fantastic surrounding amenity.
“The Doncaster Activity Centre Precinct, or ‘Doncaster Hill’ as it is known, is highly regarded as a residential locality with a number of medium and high density projects having been completed successfully over the past two to three years," he said.
 “Significant local amenity, which is dominated by the super-regional Westfield Doncaster shopping and entertainment complex, as well as spectacular views to the Melbourne CBD and surrounding suburbs, are unique factors which have contributed to the ongoing demand for quality apartment accommodation in the precinct.
“The demand in the area has been staggering. Growth in the median house price of 26 percent in the past 12 months to $1,260,000 has underpinned the demand for apartments in the area, spurring developers to compete strongly for residential development sites.”
The site also includes a single level office complex comprising four suites and onsite parking.
</body></html>

jonathanchancellor-7SQnKwU6yx

Mixed use and apartment development slated for Doncaster

<html><body>
The diversity of projects being undertaken by architects in South Australia were honoured at the Australian Institute of Architects' 2016 SA Architecture Awards. 
Four projects from the Tonsley redevelopment have collected seven awards across education, heritage, commercial, sustainability and urban design, cementing the project as a unique place with a strong identity for South Australia to celebrate its manufacturing history. 
<img src="/images/2016/07/04/Screen%20Shot%202016-07-04%20at%2011.52.35%20AM.png" alt="">
The role of architects Woods Bagot and Tridente in deciding to retain the Main Assembly Building (MAB) structure and surrounding building pods along with vibrant urban spaces designed by Oxigen, was judged a testament to both the vision of the client, the skills and collaboration of the designers and the urban design guidelines developed for the site, the jury said.
South Australia's Drill Core Reference Library by Thomson Rossi provides an important gateway to the huge 61-hectare Tonsley site,which is currently transforming into an education, research and business hub. HASSELL's Flinders University building further defines the former MAB along with the TAFE campus to the south.
Public architecture was dominated by projects that provide significant social and cultural benefits to our communities with the integration of public spaces becoming integral to the design process. The coveted Jack McConnell Award for Public Architecture, is awarded to the Stretton Centre by HASSELL, which the jury praised as an architecturally accomplished focal point for the wider northern suburbs community.
Continuing the accolades for projects in the public realm, commendations were awarded to Henley Square Remade by TCL with Troppo Architects, Glenunga Community Hub by Greenway Architects and the Zoos SA Nature's Play Ground by Phillips/Pilkington Architects and WAX Design, which also won the community's vote for the City of Adelaide Prize People's Choice Award.
The new technology incubator, Base 64 in Kent Town (below) was designed by Williams Burton Leopardi within a heritage building, and has been honoured with both the Keith Neighbour Award for Commercial Architecture and David Saunders Award for Heritage.
<img src="/images/2016/07/04/Screen%20Shot%202016-07-04%20at%2011.51.26%20AM.png" alt="">
Base 64 (below) has a unique quality that is difficult to define — part co-working, domestic, gallery, retreat and public space.It provides clues as to how contemporary workplaces might evolve to be more collaborative, networked, and personal, the jury said.
<img src="/images/2016/07/04/Screen%20Shot%202016-07-04%20at%2011.49.50%20AM.png" alt="">
Two of South Australia's leading design advocates have been recognised at the 2016 South Australian Architecture Awards.
The past Chapter president and life fellow of the Institute, Francesco Bonato has been awarded the prestigious Sir James Irwin President's Medal for his commitment to advocating great design and promoting the relevance of what design professionals contribute to the wider community.
Bonato is a founding director of Tectvs, a collaborative architecture and design studio that has received over seventeen Architecture Awards since its inception in 1989, with offices in both Adelaide and Melbourne.
Full list of winners:
Public Architecture
Jack McConnell Award - Stretton Centre by HASSELL Commendation - Glenunga Hub by Greenway Architects Educational Architecture
Dr John Mayfield Award - Flinders at Tonsley by HASSELL Commendation - Cardijn College Music Centre by Tridente Architects Residential Architecture – Houses (New)
The John S Chappel Award - West End Residence by Ashley Halliday Architects Award - Tusmore Residence by Grieve Gillett Andersen Award - Grass Trees by Max Pritchard Gunner Architects Commendation - Friedrichstrasse House by Troppo Architects Commendation - Waitpinga Retreat by Mountford Williamson Architecture Residential Architecture – Houses (Alterations &amp; Additions)
The John Schenk Award - Veil and Mortar by KHAB Architects Award - Fade to Grey by Grieve Gillett Andersen Commendation - LOCH by John Adam Architect Commendation - Cawley Tree House by C4 Architects Residential Architecture – Multiple Housing Commendation - Gibson &amp; 7th by Williams Burton Leopardi Commercial Architecture
Keith Neighbour Award - Base 64 by Williams Burton Leopardi Award - South Australian Drill Core Reference Library by Thomson Rossi Commendation - Beresford Wines Cellar Door &amp; Tasting Pavilion by Alexander Brown Architects Heritage
David Saunders Award - Base 64 by Williams Burton Leopardi Award - Tonsley Main Assembly Building and Pods by Woods Bagot and Tridente Architects Commendation - Torrens Island Quarantine Station by Habitable Places Commendation - Saint Francis Xavier Cathedral Pipe Organ Project by Grieve Gillett Andersen Interior Architecture
Robert Dickson Award - Oggi by studio-gram Award - UniSA Student Lounge by Phillips / Pilkington
Architects Award - Centre for Senior Learning, Pulteney Grammar School by Walter Brooke &amp; Associates Commendation - Elders Head Office by JPE Design Studio Urban Design Commendation - Riverbank Bridge by Tonkin Zulaikha Greer, Taylor Cullity Lethlan and Aurecon Commendation - Tonsley by Oxigen Commendation - Henley Square Remade by T.C.L with Troppo Architects Small Project Architecture 
Marjorie Simpson Award - House on Mayfair by Grieve Gillett Anderson Award - 4 Structures at Henley Square by Troppo Architects and T.C.L Commendation - Waterfall Gully Shelter and Toilet Block by Flightpath Architects
Sustainable Architecture Award - Tonsley Main Assembly Building and Pods by Woods Bagot and Tridente Architects Award - Tonsley by Oxigen Enduring Architecture Jack Cheesman Award - South Australian Forensic Science Centre by SA Public Buildings Department, Government of South Australia
Colorbond® Award for Steel Architecture Award - South Australian Drill Core Reference Library by Thomson Rossi The City of Adelaide Prize Prize Winner - Pink Moon Saloon by Sans-Arc Studio Commendation - Zoos SA Nature's Play Ground by Phillips/Pilkington Architects and WAX Design
"Fran Bonato, understands that good design and great architecture comes from hard work and dedication – summed up by the three P's of Practice, Profession and Perseverance," the SA Chapter President David Homburg said in awarding the medal.
This year's Emerging Architect Prize was awarded to Anthony Balsamo of Walter Brooke &amp; Associates for his substantial contribution to the practice of architecture in South Australia.
Early in his career, Anthony saw a gap between university graduation and the practice of architecture. In 2004 he co-founded the group New Architects Group, now known as NAG, which has had a huge impact on the whole industry, especially for young graduates, and is an initiative that has now been formalised across all Chapters of the Institute, under the national banner EmAGN, the jury noted.
</body></html>

SA architectural awards recognise Tonsley project

<html><body>
The site of Adelaide's former Trims Family Clothing Store is to be developed into a $275 million 5-star luxury residential and commercial twin tower mixed-use property.
The property, 322 King William Street, is being developed by Gerry Karidis and will be renamed Three Two Two. When completed it will cover seven floors of car parking, nine floors of commercial suites and nine floors of residential apartment accommodation.
Both towers will feature 63 apartments.
Steve Testar of Savills Residential said Three-Two-Two will be an outstanding residential development that will offer world class luxury.
"The residential component will comprise of six penthouses and a selection of studios, one, two and three bedroom apartments and are being offered via an expressions of interest campaign," he said.
The towers will feature 20 floors of commercial floor space for either purchase or lease and an additional two floors of retail space including restaurants and other services. 
The Savills team appointed to market Three Two Two King William consists of: Rino Carpinelli, Savills SA Managing Director, – Retail Leasing &amp; Sales Peter Isaksson, Savills SA Director Capital Transactions, – Commercial Office Sales Adam Hartley, Savills SA Director Office Leasing, – Office Leasing Steve Testar, Savills SA State Director Residential, – Residential Sales
For more information, <a href="https://www.karidis.com.au/developments/" target="_blank">click here</a>.
</body></html>

$275 million mixed-use development slated for Adelaide

<html><body>
A Brunswick development site has been sold by Raine &amp; Horne at $1.2 million.
Its town planning permit consist of 10 generous two bedroom apartments, 1 one bedroom apartment and a 52sq metre office on the ground floor.
Set within walking distance to cosmopolitan Sydney Road, the <a href="https://www.rhcommercial.com.au/properties/15-breese-street-brunswick-3056-victoria-cd7744c8-1283-4440-958e-0cd86e076c66" target="_blank">Breese Street property</a> was offered by Raine &amp; Horne agent Tim Frian.
</body></html>

jchancellor-FAypfDUnLy

Brunswick development site sold by Raine & Horne Commercial

<html><body>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/57114/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">
GUEST OBSERVER
This May, urbanists around the world have been celebrating the 100th anniversary of the birth of Jane Jacobs.
The American-Canadian author and activist’s spirited defence of inner-city neighbourhoods inspired a generation of urban activists and place-makers. So what might Jacobs have to teach a new generation of urbanists and planners?
Much of Jacobs' legacy stems from the successful “David and Goliath” campaigns she led in the late 1950s and 1960s against the development plans of Manhattan’s “master builder” Robert Moses.
Her first battle, to prevent an extension of Fifth Avenue that would have torn apart her beloved Washington Square Park, was followed by a series of protracted community campaigns. These ultimately saved some of Manhattan’s most iconic neighbourhoods – Greenwich Village, SoHo, Little Italy – from “slum clearance” and demolition. 
At this time, many Americans were retreating to the suburbs, and city planners – epitomised by Moses, then head of the powerful Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority, which managed vast tracts of land in New York City – imposed their “comprehensive city plans” on neighbourhoods, with scant input from local communities.
Working under the spell of Le Corbusier’s vision of the “Radiant City” (Ville Radieuse), planners like Moses saw themselves playing the heroic role of a city’s surgeon. They justified their radical urban plans through appeals to natural or scientific principle. For Le Corbusier, automobiles were machines of circulation, the “lifeblood of the 20th century”; cities needed them to avoid stagnation.
<h2>In love with the ‘sidewalk ballet’</h2>
Jacobs resisted this vision. In her first and most influential book, The Death and Life of Great American Cities, Jacobs attacked planners for ruining the cultures of cities. She saw the modernist vision of cities as:
"the dishonest mask of pretended order, achieved by ignoring or suppressing the real order that is struggling to exist and to be served."
Jacobs wrote:
When city designers try to find a design device that will express, in a clear and easy fashion, the ‘skeleton’ of city structure (expressways and promenades are current favourites for this purposes) they are on fundamentally the wrong track. A city’s very structure consists of a mixture of uses … We get close to its structural secrets when we deal with the conditions that generate diversity.
Instead of city spines and clean lines, she asked her readers to look more closely at what makes a street really work. She loved the “intricate sidewalk ballet”, a complex order that helped to maintain public safety and wellbeing through a “constant succession of eyes”.
The complexity of a place made it impossible to replicate.
The ballet of the good city never repeats itself from place to place, and in any one place it is always replete with new observations.
Jacobs’ polemic against urban planning would become its orthodoxy. Death and Life has been required reading for students of urban planning for decades. Today they learn of the failed spaces created by modernist planners and the geographies of single-use enclaves and far-flung highways they spawned.
Jacobs' campaigning inspired urban activists around the world to stage protests in their own cities. This helped usher in a new era of citizen-centric planning frameworks.
As Saskia Sassen wrote recently, it was Jacobs who first urged the need to recognise the value of “place” when considering the implementation of urban policies.
<h2>Is Jane Jacobs still relevant or useful?</h2>
Although Jacobs is a profoundly influential figure in 20th-century urbanism, in many respects her radicalism can feel like it belongs to another era.
The Manhattan districts she fought to preserve represent some of the most expensive real estate in the world, so it’s hard to disagree that a city’s dense, historic core might be worth preserving. Economist Edward Glaeser talks about “Jacobs Spillovers” – the transfers of knowledge and activity that help to explain the generation of wealth in cities like New York and London.
Some might even ask: was Jacobs simply one of the first to fly the NIMBY flag against any developments taking place within the prized neighbourhoods they helped to gentrify?
But if we take a closer look at what Jacobs had to say – and how she said it– it becomes clear her ideas remain as radical and important as they were in the 1960s.
This is perhaps no more so than in relation to rise of the “smart city”.
<h2>Smart cities and the rise of a new urban science</h2>
Today’s smart cities are big business, powered by the potential for big data and the internet of things to improve the efficiencies of urban systems. Smart cities offer solutions to improve transport management, make better investment decisions, improve accountability and promote transparent decision-making.
The premise is that with so much data (big data) being produced, planners, governments and researchers can better understand cities as complex systems, and make better decisions about how they are planned and managed. 
This explosion of data in cities – from traffic data, through mobile communications data to sensor data capturing the behaviour of natural systems and the everyday uses of infrastructure assets – is giving rise to a new “urban science”.
This incorporates machine learning, predictive analytics and complexity science. Its champions – such as Mike Batty and Luis Bettencourt – argue that we are starting to see the emergence of Jacobs' “sidewalk ballet” in data-driven form.
But while the rise of big data and smart cities opens up possibilities for cities that were previously unthinkable, we should also be wary of the limitations.
<h2>The fine arts of urban observation</h2>
Jacobs wasn’t simply claiming that cities should be understood as complex systems.
At a perhaps deeper level, Jacobs was arguing against visions of the city over-determined by the technologies that produce them: for LeCorbusier, as for Moses, the view of the city enabled by the innovation of flight helped give rise to new urban utopias like the Radiant City.
In writing Death and Life, Jacobs was also resisting the dominance of expert knowledge about a city, in favour of a democracy of lived experiences and everyday insights. She once reflected that:
"learning and thinking about city streets and the trickiness of city parks launched me into an unexpected treasure hunt."
As a new generation of planners are taught of the possibilities of a data-driven urban science, we need to remember that Jacobs' love of the sidewalk ballet also gave voice to the multiple languages, meanings, experiences and knowledge systems that underpin a vibrant urban culture.
Not all of these can be rendered by data-driven systems. Hopefully, the best insights into a city’s infinite complexity won’t only be produced by those trained with the skills to generate insights from big data.
The “data exhaust” of our daily lives will increasingly shape the way cities are understood. Much work remains to be done to ensure a cities data infrastructure is valued as a fundamental public asset.
But I can hear Jacobs issuing a word of warning: don’t forget to keep taking unexpected treasure hunts through city parks and keep your eyes on the street (not on your phones!). And keep listening out for different lived experiences and ways of knowing a place – not only those that can be rendered real-time as the data flows of complex systems. 
Sarah Barns is Urban Studies Foundation Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Institute for Culture and Society, Western Sydney University and author for The Conversation. She can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/sarah-barns-110278" target="_blank">here</a>.
</body></html>

What might Jane Jacobs say about smart cities?

<html><body>
A developer has paid $8 million for a 1,194sqm site in South Melbourne with permit approval for an eight level mixed use development comprising 83 apartments and ground floor commercial space.
The site, 15-35 Thistlethwaite Street South Melbourne (above), was sold by Colliers International to a private Chinese developer with local ties.
Colliers International’s Hamish Burgess said interest in the Fishermans Bend precinct is going from strength to strength on the back of a number of projects in the precinct achieving strong pre-sales with encouraging sales rates.
"Plot ratio changes in the Melbourne CBD have also put further supply pressure on ‘developable’ land, making fringe precincts such as Fishermans Bend attractive alternatives,” he said.
Colleagues Andrew Ryan and Ted Dwyer sold a two level 953sqm office building at 11-21 Buckhurst Street to local developer Alpha14 for $5.5 million. 
</body></html>

po-LsXgBTHBmX

$8 million South Melbourne mixed use redevelopment sale

<html><body>
SPONSORED POST
Sydney developer Longton Property Group is working on a $300 million Avantra apartment project in Mascot that is designed to imitate a suburban street, but going up instead of a horizontal orientation.
The 328-apartment complex plus ground floor retail has been designed with a sense of community by architects MD+A and interior designer Archer + Wright.
The apartment block will include communal areas such as a shared rooftop area in which residents can swim, barbeque and interact with views of the Sydney skyline.
Covering 8,762 square metres, Avantra is oriented vertically, akin to “streets in the sky”, according to MD+A architect Brent Marvin.  
“We have six metres between front doors which is typical of a small lane, and we have pocket parks at each level where residents can sit in the sun. Within the building we have areas where residents can work or socialise, entertainment zones, a full-scale pool and BBQ areas. Instead of these elements being spread out at ground level we have designed them in the sky,” he said.
Avantra will be centred around a large courtyard garden designed for communal use. The designer, Daniel Blaffsky of 360 Degree Landscape Architects, aimed to create a sense that “the whole area is your garden.”
“Our philosophy is to create a beautiful landscape, but also a setting for community, for people to have chance interactions, as well as to have spaces for privacy and to relax.”
Longton aims for Avantra to be a community unto itself.  
One way it achieves this is through technology: each apartment will come with an iPad and the myiButler app, with which residents will be able to order shopping or house cleaning without leaving their unit.
All Avantra residents will also be part of a single virtual network, or iCommunity, allowing them to share information. Residents will be able to check updates on news, weather or finance, to be accessed either on their phones or iPads, or on an electronic noticeboard in each lobby.
For more information on Avantra, <a href="https://www.avantra.com.au/" target="_blank">click here</a>.
</body></html>

Avantra homes in Sydney's Mascot akin to 'streets in the sky' 

<html><body>
New Sky Group's 88 Melbourne tower, the $100 million 55 storey development, is being marketed as offering apartment homes, some 219 residences designed for empty nesters looking to transition from the family home.
The tower, designed by architectural practice Rothelowman in conjunction with KPDO, will be Melbourne’s first apartment building to feature hand-crafted kitchen appliances by Sub-Zero and Wolf. 
Rothelowman principal Chris Hayton said the building would be a timeless and elegant addition to Melbourne’s skyline and architecturally distinct due to its illuminated form. 
“88 Melbourne will have a sophisticated presence in the city and change the way people think of apartment living,” he said. 
“It will be an iconic Melbourne address and a lasting moment in the evolution of local architecture and how we design for changing life-stages.” 
Stage one of 88 Melbourne will release the tower’s first 42 levels followed by a second and final release of the building's remaining 12 levels in the coming months. 
88 Melbourne is the second project of Melbourne developer New Sky Group and primarily features two and three bedroom apartments, with 12 upper levels devoted to three-bedroom residences, sub-penthouses and two full-floor penthouses. 
KPDO director Kerry Phelan said 88 Melbourne translates the features of a luxury hotel into an apartment setting, with a key focus creating zoned living areas to enhance privacy and enjoyment. 
“Interiors have personality and encourage the display of objects collected during a life well travelled, rather than hidden away as many new apartment designs require, ” she said. 
The building also offers five-star resident facilities across a dual-height whole-floor space on level eight. This area is devoted to an indoor lap pool featuring a spa, steam room and sauna. 
A private wine cellar for residents features a tasting area and bar, plus its own private outdoor terrace.
The 88 Melbourne display suite can be seen at 88 Queensbridge Street, Southbank.
</body></html>

New Sky Group creates first vertical community for empty nesters

<html><body>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/57114/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">
GUEST OBSERVER
Globally, interest in national urban policy peaked in the late 1970s and declined sharply thereafter. The trend held true for Australia, peaking under the Whitlam government.
The decades after the Whitlam government produced a variety of federal housing and other urban policies. None had the scope of a national urban policy.
Not until 2011, with Labor’s Our Cities, Our Future, was a national urban policy launched. This did not mirror a similar resurgent interest in Western countries. These countries promote intergovernmental decentralisation, while Australia has increased centralisation.
Australian exceptionalism – both its “unique model of metropolitan governance” and its extreme <a href="https://theconversation.com/renewing-federalism-what-are-the-solutions-to-vertical-fiscal-imbalance-31422">vertical fiscal imbalance</a> (VFI) – provides the setting for federal policy that assumes the prerogatives of state and metropolitan urban policy.
<h2>Commonwealth role rarely challenged</h2>
Urban academics and professional organisations such as the Planning Institute of Australia celebrated Our Cities, Our Future – perhaps due to the increased prominence accorded urban affairs.
Few questioned the rationale for federal engagement in matters such as metropolitan strategic planning, infrastructure investment and housing. No significant urban outcomes can be attributed to Our Cities, Our Future.
Yet the policy environment at the time did have a legacy, following the creation in 2008 of Infrastructure Australia. In a context of VFI, then-prime minister Kevin Rudd sought to rationalise federal infrastructure funding based on the “business case” for projects. He tasked the COAG Reform Council with preparing guidelines for capital city strategic planning systems that would provide an “evidence base” for federal decision-making.
In 2014, the remit of Infrastructure Australia was expanded. It was to undertake an Australian Infrastructure Audit and prepare an Australian Infrastructure Plan. The plan, finalised in 2016, holds that:
The Australian government should drive change in the planning and operation of Australia’s cities through the use of Infrastructure Reform Incentives.
This approach would:
 …tie the provision of additional funding for infrastructure to the delivery of a range of city-based reforms, focused on improving the quality of planning, development and infrastructure across Australia’s cities.
This is an extraordinary assertion of power over planning for, and infrastructure investment in, cities. It has no constitutional foundation. VFI, however, frees the pens of the drafters of urban policy and the presumptions of their political masters.
Lest we forget, at the time the plan was being finalised, for 99 days there was a minister for cities and the built environment. Again, responding to the attention given to urban affairs, urban academics and professionals feted the creation of this position. No significant urban outcomes can be attributed to the ministry.
Following Jamie Briggs’ misadventure and the appointment of Angus Taylor as assistant minister for cities and digital transformation, the Smart Cities Plan was launched. Its potential significance is huge. Its ambition is to “rethink the way our cities are planned, built and managed”, with the Commonwealth to lead the rethinking.
<h2>So what’s in the latest plan?</h2>
The plan contains much that is interesting, but little that is substantial. It has the appearance more of a think-piece than a substantive policy document. Some prominent ideas are plugged in, then ignored.
An example is the “30-minute city”. It gets headlines, but it is difficult to identify what this adds to the urban agenda once the actual commitment to public transport is considered.
What the 30-minute city concept does do is reveal the extent of federal presumption about city planning. Can one really argue that this is the job of federal government?
Together, the Australian Infrastructure Plan and the Smart Cities Plan amount to a new national urban policy based on metropolitan strategic planning, infrastructure funding and City Deals.
While acknowledging the states' constitutional prerogatives to undertake metropolitan strategic and infrastructure planning and to implement projects, VFI makes federal presumptions possible. The views of a metropolitan community of interests are not a consideration.
The federal commitment is to:
<ul>
<li>
A$50 million for infrastructure planning;
</li>
<li>
establish an infrastructure financing unit; and
</li>
<li>
invite state and territory governments to partner the Commonwealth on City Deals.
</li>
</ul>
Any federal discussion about financing infrastructure in Australia’s cities is interesting and the Smart Cities Plan does appear to presage innovative public and private financing opportunities.
As for City Deals, these are to be based on federal and state/territory partnerships to “drive national priorities tailored to local needs”. So, at the local level, national priorities prevail. The federal government knows best.
In the UK, City Deals are premised on “devolution” and the creation of metropolitan governments. Deals are negotiated with local and metropolitan governments and business leaders, with reference to civil society as well. Metropolitan governments are seen as desirable because it is believed the economic growth of cities is best promoted by city leadership.
However, neither Labor nor Coalition conceptions of national urban policy envisage city leadership serving a metropolitan constituency. Representative, revenue-generating metropolitan government, which can enter the infrastructure finance market, would threaten federal and state power and influence.
<h2>How can federal policy make a difference?</h2>
There are two preconditions for effective federal engagement in urban policy.
The first is a policy that survives the next election. Because the Labor and Coalition approaches incorporate urban issues from local to federal, they are essentially political treatises. Long-lived policies are unlikely.
The second precondition is to recognise that most policies are urban in a country that is 90% urban. The unintended urban consequences of federal policies have outweighed those of policies having urban intent. Examples include negative gearing, immigration and climate-change policies. The criterion of urban consequences should be integral to federal policy formation.
A federal concern with urban policy requires locating responsibility and funding for policies to the level of government where they are most effectively addressed. Often this will be at a metro scale. It is then best undertaken by metropolitan government.
Rather than tied infrastructure and social grants, untied fiscal decentralisation is desirable. Australia should welcome policy and expenditure differences, experimentation and mutual learning among metros.
The way forward is to consider what level of government is best placed to resolve contested urban issues, in partnership with the private sector and civil society.
A federal urban policy should be limited to issues that explicitly require federal intervention. The determination of these issues will be subject to debate. But the operating assumption should be federal policy modesty in relation to states and cities, devolution of responsibilities, and fiscal decentralisation.
Richard Tomlinson is professor of Urban Planning, University of Melbourne and author for The Conversation. He can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/richard-tomlinson-10016" target="_blank">here</a>.
</body></html>

New name, new look for latest national urban policy, but same old problem

<html><body>
The Malaysian property grouo SP Setia has spent around $10 million on an 850-square-metre development site in Prahran, Melbourne. 
The 103-105 High Street site is close to Chapel and Greville streets.
It came with approvals for a seven-level mixed-use project with ground-floor retail, an office floor and 63 car spaces.
It is SP Setia's fourth land purchase in Melbourne. 
Colliers International's Hamish Burgess marketed the property.
The site's private seller bought it for $6.2 million in 2014, realising more than 60 percent in return, selling at a unit rate of $212,766.
The architects Rothelowman are working on the project.
</body></html>

Development

Editor's Picks

Have something to contribute?

Developments

New apartments

New townhouses

News

Development

Editor's Picks

Receive the latest news stories to your inbox

Have something to contribute?

Developments

New apartments

New townhouses

News