Salta Breaks Ground on Flagship Victoria Gardens BtR

Salta Properties has broken ground on the Victoria Gardens build-to-rent project in Melbourne’s Richmond. The build-to-rent component to rise at 25 River Boulevard is part of the precinct’s Riverside sector and will comprise 476 apartments as well as 6000sq m of communal space. Amenities will include a co-working space, event space and outdoor pool. The redevelopment of the $780-million Victoria Gardens Precinct is a joint venture between Salta and shopping centre giant Vicinity Centres. The Victoria Gardens Shopping Centre is part of the precinct that will have six buildings up to 17 storeys and more than 820 homes in total. “As a private business, we’re able to move quickly and invest where we see genuine demand,” Salta director Sam Tarascio said. “That means creating homes people are proud to live in, in neighbourhoods they love, with the kind of services and amenity that give them a reason to stay for the long term.” It is part of Salta’s strategy to break into the sector using its existing portfolio and assets. “We are a developer that likes to hold what we develop,” Salta residential and mixed-use development director Edward McAuliffe told The Urban Developer ’s Build-to-Rent Summit this month. “Over our 50-year journey, we’ve retained about $3.5 billion worth of industrial and commercial real estate and a little bit of retail. “We’re building on that now with diversification into build-to-rent.” McAuliffe said that while capital was a concern, land prices would not be. “We’re just converting the family’s land holdings to build-to-rent and making decisions between build-to-sell or build-to-rent as the highest and best use,” McAuliffe said. “So everything’s been done on our own balance sheet today, but we will likely bring a capital partner in at some point, because it’ll just help us accelerate to scale and get, you know, get a few thousand apartments going, which is important for operating efficiency.” ▲ Salta residential and mixed-use development director Edward McAuliffe speaking at The Urban Developer Build-to-Rent Summit in Melbourne. The Victorian Government fast-tracked planning permission for the expansion of part of the Victoria Gardens Precinct, also known as the Doonside Precinct, through the Development Facilitation Program (DFP). As part of the criteria required for the DFP, 10 per cent of the homes created will be allocated for affordable housing. The project is expected to create 390 jobs during construction and more than 1000 jobs during operation. Victoria Gardens will be Salta’s second build-to-rent project— its first is in Fitzroy North— and will be managed by its build-to-rent platform, Est. The Fitzroy &amp; Co project comprises 94 units. Victoria is leading the nation in the build-to-rent sector—in the 2023-24 financial year, more than 1000 apartments were completed across five build-to-rent projects. The state’s completed build-to-rent apartments account for nearly half of the total completed across the country. ▲ Rendering of the co-working spaces and other amenities for Salta Properties’ 25 River Boulevard build-to-rent project. There are 18,200 build-to-rent apartments either under construction or approved within Melbourne—more than half the country’s total. “We see build-to-rent as a long-term, viable model that addresses Australia’s housing needs with greater resilience and flexibility,” Tarascio said. Salta has another build-to-rent site in the works—at Melbourne’s Docklands under the Est platform. The developer recently won planning permission for three office projects: the $230-million, 10-storey mixed-use project at 475 Church Street, Richmond; the 5500sq m, 7-storey development at 60 Landridge Street, Collingwood; and the 8600sq m, 7-storey scheme at 122-128 Dover Street, Cremorne.

Salta Breaks Ground on Flagship Victoria Gardens BtR

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