66 | T T Kelly Deeks New townhouses for rental market DEVELOPMENT Oakland Group: Melrose Terraces Scaffolding supply & installation • Roof edge protection systems • Light commercial scaffolding 022 560 0602 | info@kylin.co.nz | www.kylin.co.nz The new Melrose Terraces development by The Oakland Group has brought 34 new townhouses to central Auckland’s rental market, offering unique and boutique design and a high standard of finishing in an attractive location. The Oakland Group has been developing residential and commercial properties in Auckland for the past decade, with its developments significantly contributing to the enhancement and regeneration of their local areas. In true Oakland Group style, Melrose Terraces has been developed and designed to meet the market’s demands, and also to conform to the new post-Covid economic environment. The Oakland Group has traditionally built apartment blocks but settled on a terraced development for this Mt Roskill site because it would require less construction for less cost. The Oakland Group also produces high quality developments and Melrose Terraces is no exception. “We don’t go for the cheapest products, because we want this development to be a nice rental for five to 10 years,” says Oakland Group director Verena Wu. “These homes have to be low maintenance and they have to be durable. The quality is really important because we don’t want to be receiving phone calls about having to fix things.” Verena says a terraced development offers the residents’ society an easier maintenance programme than an apartment building, and for residents their residents’ society fees are far cheaper then body corporate fees. Melrose Terraces comprises a mixture of 34 two and three-bedroom homes, suitable for couples as well as larger families. Just 15 minutes’ drive to the Auckland CBD and some of the city’s most popular beaches, Mt Roskill is home to great schools, parks, walking and biking tracks, and dining options. “It’s not too far away from the city and the traffic is okay,” Verena says. The Oakland Group has been sitting on this site for some time, before Auckland’s Unitary Plan was amended in 2016, and has bided its time in order to be able to deliver the best new community possible. The original resource consent was for 14 units and included a tree protection issue. This, combined with the stream that runs through the site, made design difficult and maximising the potential for the land impossible. “Under the new rules we can build 34 units, so this is a big game for our shareholders. It has been a long journey and even though we lost a bit of time waiting for the Unitary Plan change, what we have been able to achieve by waiting has made it well worth the wait.” Verena says the site’s civil works were tested by the Auckland floods at the end of January and passed the test with distinction. “It was a good test for the stormwater services and the site was completely fine, thanks to the experience and expertise of our civil and structural engineer JNG Engineering and our civil contractor Colonial Construction.” Melrose Terraces has been built by Morton Construction, the same firm that recently built an apartment building in Haverstock for The Oakland Group. This project was 33 units across four levels, and was completed on time and on budget. “We were happy with it so we wanted to keep a good relationship with Morton Construction and choose them again.” Now on the market for sale is the new Milenio residential and commercial development on the North Shore. With stage two now under construction, this is a multi-stage, multi-use project and The Oakland Group has planned a whole new community with a mix of housing options from terraces to apartments as well as retail and office buildings for commercial use.
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