Affordable Options Pursued for Richmond Apartments

Plans have been put forward for a boutique apartment project in Melbourne’s hipster suburb of Richmond targeted at owner-occupiers looking to enter the market.

Private entity Nijon Nominees has filed plans with the Yarra City Council for a nine-storey apartment project that offers 51 apartments in a mix of one, two, three and four-bedroom configurations.

Diverse inner-city Richmond, which lies on the fringe of Melbourne CBD before the city spreads into the leafy eastern suburban belt, has in recent years been rapidly transforming into a thriving tech and creative district and has become one of the city’s emerging fringe office markets.

It is known for its converted warehouse residences, high-rise flats and terrace houses with key streets offering a lively retail sector and bustling with cafes, restaurants and weekend markets. 

The suburb remains a highly competitive housing market with the average house selling for $1.4 million and units $630,000 after surging by 4.1 per cent over the past 12 months.

Nijon Nominees, headed by Nigel and Deborah Schwarz, and John and Melinda Cameron, plans to redevelop the underutilised 1130sq m site at 2-6 Hull Street—a block back from the suburb’s main strip Bridge Street. The site is currently home to a double-storey brick warehouse.

The proposed development, designed by DKO Architecture, is among a cluster of mid-rise apartment buildings that have sprouted up over the past 15 years, particularly on the north side of Bridge Road. 

The development will feature two landscaped communal areas—a courtyard offering a casual place to sit within a garden setting and rooftop terrace with barbecue facilities and city views. The development will also provide carparking for 62 vehicles.

▲ The 1130sq m block is owned by Nijon Nominees. Image: Nearmap

The Richmond development will be sustainably focused, built using sustainable materials and once realised will include solar panels on the roof, rain gardens and high-performance glazing. It will target a minimum average NatHERS energy rating of 7 stars.

Nijon Nominees is now seeking council feedback in relation to two potential affordable housing models, both of which would involve a partnership arrangement with not-for-profit Unison Housing. 

The first model would involve the sale of five dwellings, as social housing, forming part of the proposed development to Unison Housing. 

The second model is a first home buyer purchase scheme targeting moderate income earners under which Unison Housing would act as the real estate broker.

If realised, it will join a number of boutique apartment developments being planned or coming out of the ground in Richmond.

Nearby, at 38 Bendigo Street, Lendlease is pressing ahead with Gramercy Terraces—a collection of three-bedroom townhouses on the grounds of the former Studio Nine, which was also once the site of the Wertheim Piano Factory.

The ASX-listed developer is also readying plans for 140 apartments at Kennedy Avenue.

Meanwhile, Cadre’s project at 27-31 Gibdon Street, known as Mattone, will comprise 10 townhouses upon completion while Poly Australia’s development at 171 Buckingham Street, Lily Garden, is closing in on completion and comprises 158 apartments.