Elwood House - 2 Pine Avenue, Elwood

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An iconic heritage building on the corner of Argyle and Fitzroy streets, once home to a boot-maker, is due for a major upgrade, as renowned developer <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/news/piccolo-gets-busy-in-fitzroy">Piccolo</a> gets the green light to commence construction. The boutique residence will feature 34 apartments and commercial spaces, and has been designed in collaboration with Hecker Guthrie and <a href="/architects/jackson-clements-burrows-architects">Jackson Clements Burrows</a>.

Urban.com.au asked director Michael Piccolo for a bit of background on ‘<a href="https://www.urban.com.au/new-apartments/fitzroy-house-71-75-argyle-street-fitzroy">Fitzroy House</a>’, the third build in <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/developers/piccolo">Piccolo's</a> 'House' series following the success of ‘<a href="https://www.urban.com.au/buildings/elwood-house-2-pine-avenue-elwood">Elwood House</a>’ and ‘Garden House’.

<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/305891685" width="640"></iframe>

Urban.com.au: Given Fitzroy House’s unique heritage as a 19th Century boot maker shop, how has the development been designed to preserve the historic character of the property? What was the inspiration behind the design? 

Michael Piccolo: The heritage element of this building was fundamental to how we approached the design. We wanted to retain the iconic façade, including the striking arched windows and bluestone sills and the faded paint signage. Knowing the heritage building would remain as ground floor commercial space, we then looked at how to incorporate the new residences in a way that was sensitive to the façade and the local streetscape. This inspired the idea of the ethereal lantern-like structure that sits above and set back from the heritage element so as not to overshadow it. The interiors and materials used are also reminiscent of <a href="/new-apartments/fitzroy-vic-3065">Fitzroy’s</a> history with gritty, tinted elements that speak to the tenacity of this environment.

U: Have there been any obstacles to reach the approval stage of this project? 

MP: No, local council were very supportive of our proposal and we’re happy to be working with them to ensure the end result adds vibrancy and character to the local surrounds.

U: What fuelled your decision to appoint a builder ahead of the residential pre-sales? 

MP: I think in today’s market buyers want to have confidence in the development they’re buying into and they want to know as much information as possible. We always aim to approach things from the purchaser’s point of view, and if I were buying into a project I would want to know who the whole project team is before I buy. By appointing a builder upfront, we can give our buyers confidence that not only will the construction definitely be moving ahead, but they can know who will be working on it from the start and can have peace of mind knowing they’ve made an informed decision.

U: Are there any design or structural themes which connect all three projects (Fitzroy House, Elwood House and Garden House)? 

MP: All three projects are distinct in their design and character, which reflect their local environment. The connecting theme across all our projects is the attention to detail that we implement and our consideration for how we can improve the lives of our residents. For that reason all the projects have several things in common including private outdoor areas for each apartment, expansive living spaces and bedrooms and homes that have access to abundant natural light.

U: What’s in the pipeline for future projects? Can we expect to see a fourth “House” in years to come? 

MP: Absolutely, we will keep building these houses for many years to come. We have an excellent team of collaborators and industry partners that we work with consistently, and together we continue to learn from each project and evolve, so each house is better than the last. Good things take time and in order to create these houses successfully you need to find the right location, so when we do there will be another house on the horizon.

Want to find out more about Piccolo Developments? Read our previous interview with Michael Piccolo where we discuss Elwood House <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/news/michael-piccolo-on-the-design-virtues-of-elwood-house">here</a>.
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Olivia Round

Renowned developer Michael Piccolo discusses exciting new project 'Fitzroy House'

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It's very easy to assume that Melbourne is only building skyscrapers and high-rise towers in the inner city and low-density detached housing on the fringes.  Skyscraper proposals attract headlines across a wide range of media outlets but there's an equally huge story of Melbourne's current development scene that is easily overlooked.

What of the middle ground between skyscraper or sprawl?  There are in fact hundreds of small stature apartment projects in Melbourne's suburbs that are easily glossed over.

At the time of writing there are 983 projects listed on the Urban.com.au Project Database.  208 of those are made up of either 2, 3 or 4 floors and when combined contain over 7,000 dwellings across all phases of the development cycle: that is from planning to construction.

If the search criteria is expanded to include projects up to and including 5 floors, the total number of projects rockets up to 339 with over 12,000 dwellings in play.

The following (long!) list is every low-rise project with either 2, 3 or 4 floors that Urban.com.au is tracking on within our  <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/developments">Project Database</a>.  <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/">Data Portal</a> subscribers can pull this information directly by exporting the database and filtering through a spreadsheet program like Excel or OpenOffice Calc.

I'm going to let the database do the talking from this point on - so get off your mobile, turn your tablet to portrait layout or jump on a desktop/laptop: here's Melbourne's low-rise high-density story.
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Alastair Taylor

Welcome to boom-town: Melbourne's low-rise high-density projects in one long list

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Melbourne developer Piccolo's latest boutique apartment project, the aptly titled Elwood House, looks to build on the previous success of their Garden House in Carlton. Located at 2 Pine Avenue on the corner with Ormond Road, the 4-storey development will feature 31 luxury apartments and ground level retail to Ormond Road. Underpinning the intended quality of the development are apartment sizes, with two bedroom dwellings beginning at approximately 100sqm in size and beyond the $1 million barrier.

The display suite is highly impressive in itself - a shame that it will eventually be demolished to make way for the building - but it gives an excellent indication of what residents can expect. Interiors feature bespoke custom joinery and one colour palette - neutral - with a consistent tile finish to living areas, kitchens and bathrooms that also extends to the outdoor balconies. Carpets will be limited to bedrooms only.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/elwood_house_living_areas.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Elwood House typical open plan living area. © Piccolo"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="252" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/elwood_house_living_areas.jpg?itok=RPU1yyAF" title="Elwood House typical open plan living area. © Piccolo" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>An Elwood House typical open plan living area. Image courtesy Piccolo Developments</figcaption></figure>Company founder Michael Piccolo described it best when he said, the project was all about "bringing the band back together" with the development team that delivered Garden House; Piccolo, Woods Bagot and Hecker Guthrie conspiring once more. This came about largely as a result of timing with Nick Karalis of Woods Bagot returning from an overseas sojourn just as Piccolo had settled on the site.

The building's exterior is best described as rich and textured, employing a variety of robust materials not unlike The Garden House, such as off form weathered concrete panels and hand-made Pedersen bricks from Denmark. The selected materials will extend the life of the building’s exterior and ensure little maintenance is required on the part of the residents.

Greenery is draped over balconies for a natural softer counterpoint to the harder surfaces of the facade. This common language and aesthetic reinforces the concept of Elwood House as the sister building to Garden House, and unlike traditional roofs which are typically constructed of metal sheeting on multi-unit developments, Elwood House will have a concrete roof for improved water proofing.

<blockquote>
The façade of Elwood House will be brick, concrete, metal and glass, without a painted surface, which will increase its longevity. The only thing you’ll need to do is clean the windows! Every apartment facing Pine Avenue and Ormond Road will have a planter terrace that will receive rainwater collected from rainwater tanks stored in the basement. A circular reticulation system will pump the water through the development and water all of the planters.
<cite>Michael Piccolo</cite>
</blockquote>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/elwood_house_close_up.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Composition of materials which make up the facade. © Piccolo"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="252" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/elwood_house_close_up.jpg?itok=7eiI3U3u" title="Composition of materials which make up the facade. © Piccolo" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Composition of materials which make up the facade. Image courtesy Piccolo Developments</figcaption></figure>The project features a number of built-in initiatives that will ensure future residents are able to move with, and embrace technology as it evolves, while also affording the building a 6-star green star rating. When founder Michael Piccolo test-drove a Tesla electric car recently, he began wondering just how soon electric vehicles will be embraced by Australians.

<blockquote>
When I drove the Tesla last year I thought, these are definitely coming to Australia. I believe that in 10 years, we will all be driving electric cars. This lead to the question, what can we do to prepare for that?
<cite>Michael Piccolo</cite>
</blockquote>

Consequently every car park in Elwood House's basement features its own 30-amp power point, which is designed to accommodate an electric vehicle. Each socket is connected back to the apartment's power metre to ensure that individuals are billed according to their electricity use. Requiring capital outlay from the developer's perspective, the move is considered a necessary step towards future-proofing the building for residents.

Further trends being incorporated into Elwood House include:

<ul>
<li>Rooftop solar panels that contribute electricity to supplement residents’ gas hot water systems</li>
	<li>Vast double-glazed windows to allow natural light in as well as provide thermal and acoustic insulation</li>
	<li>Study desks built into cabinets, with a laptop shelf and power point with two electric sockets and a built-in USB charger (these are also installed in each of the bedrooms and the USB chargers are 2.1 amps – suitable for tablets)</li>
	<li>Installation of infrastructure for optic fibre – all conduits are in place waiting for cables to be run in</li>
	<li>Set up of NBN box, ready for its arrival in Elwood</li>
</ul>
<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/elwood_house_courtyard.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Common courtyard. © Piccolo"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="561" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/elwood_house_courtyard.jpg?itok=TSPZIX_V" title="Common courtyard. © Piccolo" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Common courtyard. Image courtesy Piccolo Developments</figcaption></figure>Michael Piccolo believes potential buyers will be drawn to the location due to its proximity to the beach while also being attracted to Elwood Village and the sense of community within the area. The quality of finishes and size of apartments is targeted largely towards the owner-occupier market. Asked of the potential for another 'House' project, Michael replied only if both the site and timing are right.

Elwood House is scheduled for construction commencement during July 2015 with completion expected by the end of 2016.
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Elwood House

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Renowned developer Michael Piccolo discusses exciting new project 'Fitzroy House'

Welcome to boom-town: Melbourne's low-rise high-density projects in one long list

Michael Piccolo on the design virtues of Elwood House

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