the collective \ hawthorn
Developing our City
The Collective Hawthorn Address \ 25 Lynch Street, Hawthorn Developer \ APL Living Building design \ PLUS Architecture Interior design \ PLUS Architecture Sales \ Andrew Leoncelli 0405 523 451 » www.thecollectivehawthorn.com.au
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emographers would surely find the suburb recognised that having PLUS Architecture design of Hawthorn a bit of a puzzle. Average the development would really raise the standard of households swing from affluent families in buildings along Lynch Street, which has been light grand old Edwardians to university students industrial for so long. snacking on microwaved noodles in shoebox units. “Everybody is actually quite excited about The Boasting more than its fair share of parks and private Collective coming to the area, which is great.” schools and close enough to the city without being Those looking to break into an inner-suburban considered “inner-city”, it’s not hard to see why this market at a reasonable price point are a clear target postcode is hot property to just about everybody. market for The Collective, as are locals who have seen However, with average house prices well in excess of their homes shoot up in value over the past 20 years. $1.3 million, the only way for most people is up. Leoncelli notes that the expansion of Swinburne That’s where projects such as The Collective come in. University’s Hawthorn campus has made an obvious Andrew Leoncelli, of CBRE Residential Projects, impact on the number of young people pouring into the says the APL Living development of 31 one- and area, but says it’s not the only factor. two-bedroom apartments was designed in response to “There’s also a lot of young people who grew up and the growing market for apartment blocks in Hawthorn. went to school in the area and now want to live close to “It’s traditionally been the free-standing family their friends and family,” he says. homes, but in the last five to 10 years, apartments What each of these groups will find at 25 Lynch have really become a very accepted way of living Street is a evenly distributed mix of one- and in Hawthorn,” says Leoncelli. “It’s a nice two-bedroom apartments with top-of-the-range alternative and a much more affordable entry standard features including stone benchtops, postCoDe point into one of Melbourne’s best suburbs.” glass splashbacks, European appliances and The Collective is part of a larger project wide balconies. supported by the Boroondara Council One side of the building receives northern and Victorian state government to create sunlight, while the other is privy to spectacular high-density living opportunities within this city views; buyers can take their pick. light industrial pocket of Hawthorn. “[PLUS] have been really good with maximising “It’s all privately owned industrial land, now worth the efficiency of the floorplans so there’s no wasted so much money that it’s pretty hard to justify running a space, which I think is important in compact one- and business out of it,” Leoncelli says of the precinct, which two-bedroom apartments,” Leoncelli says. runs west from Glenferrie Road to Power Street and one “Craig Yelland, the director, actually lives in an block south of Lynch Street. apartment himself, so he lives and breathes what he “The council have put in place a program to take does. Together with Ian Briggs they’ve done a good job apartment development out of the blue-ribbon streets of of creating a really distinctive and efficient floor plan Hawthorn and put it into appropriate locations, like this with natural light wherever possible.” West Hawthorn precinct.” The Collective is currently 70 per cent sold and The apartments have been designed by PLUS Leoncelli hopes to meet targets by the end of 2012 so Architecture, a name with plenty of pull in residential that construction can begin early in the new year. development from Port Melbourne to Prahran. He says that in addition to the lifestyle offered by this Leoncelli credits the firm with raising the benchmark prime location, the size and scale of the development for design in the area with The Collective, which he says has been a huge drawcard for a broad range of buyers. was instrumental in getting the plans approved. In short, it’s high-density living, Hawthorn-style. \ JO DAVY “It’s not just another block of apartments – it’s a jdavy@theweeklyreview.com.au very good-looking building,” Leoncelli says. “VCAT
High design: Wide balconies are a feature of The Collective. (Supplied)
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december 12, 2012 \ The weekly review 37