Rooftop gardens bringing communal park life to inner-city developments
Gone are the washing lines, and unsightly water tanks are banished behind architecturally designed screens. Rooftop gardens are almost de rigour in new apartment blocks.
Property developers are creating park-like green spaces on their residential buildings to attract buyers with the promise of an exclusive community.
Carlton’s $65 million Bravo residential project will turn its roof (pictured above) into a stylish space with outdoor lounges, entertaining areas, flower gardens and a vegetable patch with knockout views of Melbourne. It’s costing the developer a cool $500,000.
“Carlton has a strong identity and community spirit; therefore it was important to reflect this by democratising the views with communal rooftop gardens. Using the area simply for rainwater collection would have been a waste,” says Bravo developer Matt Vaughan.
Given that 24 apartments in Bravo sold off the plan in the first few weeks of marketing, a nice rooftop might be a big drawcard.
In South Yarra Icon Properties’ $35 million See Apartments, the $300,000 rooftop garden (pictured above and three below) is such a hit that residents must reserve a portion for private parties.
The garden has great views, covered and open-air entertaining areas, a built-in barbecue with food preparation benches and a sink. There is even a gas-log fire. It instantly became so busy that the owner’s corporation created a reservation system so a section can be divided off for private events.
“We wanted to move away from the typical gym and provide an extended outdoor living and entertaining space that residents will actually use,” says ICON director Ashley Murdoch.
In Sydney the trend to rooftop gardens is long established, with the Hayson Group creating a huge 2,800-square-metre garden in its M Central complex in Pyrmont back in 2005. Internationally acclaimed Sydney-based landscape architect Daniel Baffsky planted native grasses, succulents, mature trees, vine arbours and installed boardwalks, water features and art pieces. Residents even walk their dogs there.
A green rooftop not only has cultural cachet, it has green credibility, with grass extracting pollution particles from the air. They can be largely watered from harvested rainwater.
In a competitive market it’s wise to stand out from the pack, with Frasers Property and Sekisui House Australia’s $2 billion Central Park project in Sydney’s Chippendale integrating large green spaces on the 5.8-hectare site and capping the second phase – Park Lane – with a lavish gardens.
The developer secured the skills of Danish landscape architect Jeppe Aagaard Andersen to design communal rooftop gardens with themed rooms with unique uses. There will also be outdoor spas, barbecue facilities, tables and seating. Residents – there will eventually be 2,500 of them – will be able to collect and even plant their own herbs.
The controversial multi-tower $300 million Rozelle Village proposal in Sydney is going all out with its $2.3 million residents’ rooftop (architect's impressions above and below).
Design director Frank Stanisic of Stanisic Associates Architects aims to create a 5,000-square-metre leisure garden with a full-sized tennis court hidden behind a six-metre high, planted green screen. A tall green wall of vegetation will also surround the indoor-outdoor pool. There will gardens, green space plus decking, seating and barbecue areas.
Managing director of the project Ian Wright says the user will absorb the running costs.
“The residential strata body will have a sinking fund that will reflect the amenities, however, the demographic of the people expected to buy there will accept that as a lifestyle choice.
“You can’t live so close to the city and have all of these suburban-style facilities without having to pay for it,” says Wright.
