A smarter model to live by
Forcing home-hunters further out along the urban fringe is not the answer to Melbourne’s population growth, says developer, red.c, who has instead created a new residential building model titled ‘Canopi’ that aims to combine the convenience of inner-suburban living with the lifestyle benefits of a free-standing home.
Each Canopi project is positioned within a 15 kilometre radius of the city and offers a series of two storey residences that have been cleverly designed to include three full-size bedrooms, two bathrooms and two car spaces.
The first Canopi model titled ‘Canopi, Lae Street’ was launched in Footscray in late 2009. The 43-home project proved popular with purchasers, reaching sold-out status in a little over four months.
Among the project’s first residents were Karl and Caroline. The couple moved into Lae Street last month and say they were delighted to find a home that offered an attainable price-point in their preferred location.
“When we first moved to Melbourne we were renting a one bedroom apartment in Albert Park, and quickly decided we’d like to buy a home that would provide us with room to grow.
“We knew that we wanted to be close to the city, but everything in the bayside area was just way out of our price range.
“We stumbled across the Canopi, Lae Street project and really liked the developer’s way of thinking – combining three large bedrooms with open plan living and modern finishes. It was a really nice design in a location that we really liked,” Karl said.
red.c co-director, Cameron Alderson said the Canopi model was based on the need to provide attainable, high quality homes in Melbourne’s desirable inner and middle-ring suburbs, rather than force buyers into the outer fringe in order to find affordable home and land.
“The current bias towards pushing most of Melbourne’s growth into the outer suburbs is troubling on two fronts; not only is it unsustainable in terms of providing resources and infrastructure to keep up with this growth, but it’s also not very eco-friendly.
“Our difference is we aim to provide attainable housing for home-buyers in suburbs where the infrastructure already exists,” he said.
red.c founding director, Andy Evans said the upcoming launch of Canopi, Valley Lake, in conjunction with joint venture partner, MAB Corporation, would further build on the existing model to provide a series of luxury homes in a stunning central location.
“We have taken the success of Canopi, Lae Street and further refined it to deliver a series of beautiful lake-front residences at ‘Valley Lake’ in Niddrie, which is adjacent to Essendon.
“With prices ranging from $575,000 to just $599,000, Canopi, Valley Lake provides buyers with an affordable home in a desirable location.
“We want to show purchasers that they don’t have to move to Melbourne’s fringe in order to enjoy a three bedroom home and a spacious modern lifestyle,” he said.
Canopi, Valley Lake will be released to the public on December 3. For more information or to register your interest, please visit the website: www.canopivalleylake.com.au or call the selling agents, Kingsford Property on 1300 CANOPI (1300 226674).