Clever design for interiors that shine

Like archers aiming for the bullseye, seasoned apartment buyers have an eye for storage. They seek it out in every property they inspect, searching for hidden cupboards and clever built-in features.

These keen storage hunters will not be disappointed at Arden Gardens, the 8156-square-metre site soon to house almost 300 apartments in two towers and low-rise terrace apartments.

Clever storage solutions make even the smallest of these apartments shine, says Michelle Cavicchiolo, senior interior designer at the Buchan Group.

“Most of the one-bedroom apartments feature additional, generous built-in storage cupboards and study spaces to make apartment living functional,” she says.

“The one-bed apartment kitchens also incorporate a dining table to maximise the living space further without compromising on functionality.

“Bathrooms boast ample storage with large under-bench drawers and spacious mirrored cabinets. Each bathroom features a generous shower with expansive built-in stone hobs for accessories.”

Functionality may be top of the agenda here, but not at the expense of high-end finishes. All apartments come with natural stone splashbacks, reconstituted stone benchtops, wool carpet in the bedrooms, timber floorboards in the living spaces and porcelain tiles in the wet areas.

Interiors aside, it’s the impressive shared facilities that will wow at Arden Gardens. There are two cinemas, a garden retreat, gym, cafe and Woolworths at podium level.

It was these features that caught Maggie Ormerod’s eye. But it was the proximity to the Arden Street headquarters of his beloved North Melbourne Football Club that attracted her husband George.

“It’s close to the footy club, I’ve been a member at North Melbourne for about 30 years,” he says.

The couple will soon move from their three-level Kensington townhouse to a two-bedroom, second-floor apartment at Arden Gardens. Moving without having to go too far was a big plus for the Ormerods.

“My wife’s still working in the city and we keep the same postcode when we move from Kensington to North Melbourne, which is good,” George says.

“This house is over three levels so looking to the future, eventually it’s going to be too much with the stairs and everything.

“So we’re downsizing to something smaller.”

Construction at Arden Gardens is under way with Woolworths set to open midway through next year and the towers scheduled for completion by the end of 2018.

The development will be a stone’s throw from the new underground Arden train station, one of five new stations to be built as part of the Melbourne Metro Rail project.

At a glance

• Arden Gardens, 168 Macaulay Road, North Melbourne
• Architect: The Buchan Group
• Developer: CBD Development
• Number of apartments: 299: 49 one-bedroom; 148 two-bedroom; 86 three-bedroom; 16 four-bedroom
• Internal sizes (square metres): One bedroom 45-61, two bedroom 66-117, three bedroom 82-171, four bedroom 116-190
• External areas (square metres): 6-150.
• Prices: One-bedroom $365,000-$500,000; two-bedroom $588,000-$898,000; three-bedroom $710,000-$1.6 million; four-bedroom $1.065 million-$1.92 million
• Car parking: Two-bedrooms have one car space; three-bedrooms have one or two car spaces; and four-bedrooms have two car spaces
• Completion: Stage 1 (podium) – mid-2018; stage 2 (towers) – end of 2018
• Agent: CBRE, Andrew Leoncelli 1300 888 770
• Open for inspection: On-site display suite open Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, 12pm-4pm.