This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
GLOBAL student accommodation provider Scape is confident its $1 billion investment in Sydney’s inner south east will pay off, having just received development approval for four projects on Anzac Parade and with the green light for a fifth imminent.
Ranging in height from six to 18 storeys, the Kensington and Kingsford projects will be delivered over the next five years and include extensive public domain work featuring laneways, plazas and multi-purpose spaces and innovation labs.
The precinct will comprise over 1,500 bedrooms, 8,000 sqm of retail and commercial spaces around the University of New South Wales precinct.
Stephen Gaitanos, managing director and co-founder of Scape said, the “trophy assets” will deliver much-needed residential and student rental accommodation and deliver an economic hub for Randwick’s expanding health and education precincts.
“These projects are anticipated to create significant employment opportunities with flow through economic impact set to exceed $2 billion,” he said.
Australia’s university sector has been left reeling from the absence of international students as the pandemic halted global travel. Australia is the third-largest international education provider in the world, and the sector is Australia’s fourth-largest export sector. It supports about 200,000 jobs and contributed $37.5 billion to the economy in the last financial year.
New South Wales Treasurer Dominic Perottet earlier this month revealed a plan to start flying in 250 international students into the state every two weeks from the middle of the week. An estimated 50,000 are waiting to get back into the state, which struck a deal with the Australian Capital Territory to work together to return international students to campuses.
Scape has backing from institutional investors including National Pension Scheme of Korea, AXA, Allianz and APG. It has continued to build during COVID, completing 4,000 rooms. It owns and operates 15,000 bedrooms in Australia and has another 10,000 in development, and despite the pandemic’s smashing of the sector lodged the development applications for the new projects August last year.
Adam Trent, director of acquisitions and developments at Scape, said the projects have aligned with the new Local Environmental Plan and Development Control Plan and accommodate Randwick Council and community feedback. The sites were designated as “opportunity sites” by the Kensington to Kingsford (K2K) Planning Proposal.
“Randwick Council’s K2K strategy has paved the way for urban regeneration in the Anzac Parade corridor. As a very proud community partner, Scape looks forward to creating one of Sydney’s best living and learning environments off campus,” Trent said.
Scape and Randwick City Council held design competitions for the four buildings. SJB, BVN, PTW and Plus Architecture were selected. SJB designed gateway building Scape Lachlan, built on the largest opportunity site at the Todman Square intersection.
Amenities across the buildings will include rooftop pools with gyms, outdoor cinemas and relaxation zones, co-working and study zones including a library, multiple shared dining and lounging spaces across various building levels will encourage social interaction.
Several sustainable elements will also be woven into the Green Star designs, such as car share, e-bikes, rainwater reuse and highly landscaped zones.
Urban design experts Roberts Day and town planners Willowtree Planning were engaged to masterplan the led project to create complete precincts at Todman Square and Kensington Gateway.
