ICON has been appointed to deliver US giant Greystar’s latest entrant into the build-to-rent market, with their $500 million South Melbourne project.
Located at 15-85 Gladstone Street in Melbourne’s Fisherman’s Bend precinct on the city fringe, the planning approved project will comprise 700 residential apartments and 850sqm of ground floor retail, 4,300sqm of residential amenities across three towers, with a six-storey podium.
“We intend to work with Icon to create the next generation of Build to Rent properties – state-of-the-art developments, in the best strategic locations, built and managed to our global industry-leading standards,” said Chris Key, managing director of Greystar, Australia.
The Scott Carver-designed project is set to become of the country’s most expansive purpose-built built-to-rent developments, housing up to 1,500 residents and boasting more than 4,300sqm of indoor and outdoor communal space.
“Our vision for the precinct revolves around the scale and rich variety of amenities on offer, which includes wellness and co-working spaces, pet amenities, and sophisticated resident lounges. It is an exciting time in the Build to Rent space in Australia and we look forward to partnering with Icon on a project which takes renting to the next level,” added Key.
The development will be fossil fuel-free and is targeting 100% renewable energy, a five-star Green Star Design and As-Built Certification.
Other sustainable features will include rooftop solar panel systems, a recycled water pipe network and electric vehicle charging points.
Greystar is targeting young families and young professionals, with the development sitting adjacent to South Melbourne Primary School and under a kilometre from the CBD.
The Greystar BTR development is itself set to generate more than 1,000 full-time equivalent construction jobs and nearly 100 ongoing jobs upon its completion.
“The scale of this project, and the opportunity to work with an experienced operator such as Greystar is particularly appealing for our team. The project will create an inspiring space that provides opportunity for community connection – and brings an entirely new way of living to South Melbourne,” said Evan Byrne, CEO and managing director of Icon.
This is the second received by Greystar in Melbourne within the last 12 months, following its $500 million South Yarra project, spanning 625 units and 2,400sqm of retail and commercial space.
“Gladstone Street is an exciting addition to our development pipeline in Australia and advances our efforts to make a significant contribution to diversity of choice in housing supply,” concluded Key.
Construction on the Gladstone Street project is set to commence in July 2022, with completion scheduled for 2024.
