Sophisticated living in new urban village

Alexandra Park Urban Village, Greenlane West, Epsom. Illustration / supplied

ALEXANDRA PARK URBAN VILLAGE, GREENLANE WEST, EPSOM

ON OFFER: Landscaped urban village of freehold apartments, terrace homes and upper penthouses. All with additional outdoor living. Typically with one or two car parks, penthouses have more. Views can include racecourse, sea, park and the neighbourhood from buildings up to nine storeys incorporating shops, restaurants and other retail.

A: 1-bed, 1-bath, 70sq m (plus 5sq m deck) $720,000.

B: 2-bed, 2-bath, some with study areas, 90-100sq m (plus 10-27sq m deck) from $975,000.

C: 3-bed, 2-bath, some with study areas, 129-133sq m (plus 25-39sq m deck) from $1.85 million.

D: 2-3 bed, 2-bath terrace homes, 112-137sq m (plus 54-68sq m rooftop terrace) from $1.39 million.

E: 3-bed, 3-bath penthouses, one with additional study, 234-349sq m (plus 64-140sq m decks) from $2.95 million.

ON THE WEB: apliving.co.nz

SCHOOL ZONES: Cornwall Park School, Auckland Normal Intermediate, double grammar.

INSPECT: Display suite open noon-4pm daily, Gate-D 223 Greenlane West.

CONTACT: Sherryl Todd, Juliet Lichtenstein or Bixia Liang of Colliers, 021 222 6308 (Sherryl), 021 521 532 (Juliet) or 021 673 315 (Bixia).

A trifecta of drawcards has driven more than $220 million of sales to date in Alexandra Park's urban village: the location, spacious designs and the 'everything at your fingertips' concept.

Dominique Dowding, CEO of 125-year-old Auckland Trotting Club, which is developing the mixed-use village, says: "Stage one is 80 per cent sold and stage two is over 85 per cent sold. We're doing very well.

"Our stage one building, Eastgate, is now coming out of the ground and basement work for stage two has started."

There is still a cross-section of the village's apartments, multi-level town homes and luxurious penthouses available to purchase.

Dominique says buyers are doing the rounds of several display suites then coming back to Alexandra Park to buy swayed by some key factors.

She says: "They like our spaciousness, how high the ceilings are, how large the spaces and storage are. Buyers feel that they are getting more value for their money because of that."

Apartments have a 2.7m stud height and penthouses have 3m.

Buyers are also embracing the concept of living in a boutique urban village. The newly created neighbourhood will foster a sense of community, with lots of green space and everyday conveniences.

Offerings will include restaurants, a gourmet FreshChoice supermarket, hairdressers, bank and pharmacy plus other businesses complemented by the Auckland Trotting Club's entertainment facilities.

The location appeals to many, being double grammar zoned and on the edge of Cornwall Park, offering diverse views including the city, harbour and the park. Dominique suspects those transitioning from stand-alone homes will find this environment less 'grittily urban' than downtown Auckland can be.

Image 1 of 7: Home-buyers are racing to be a part of Alexandra Park and join a new community. Illustrations / supplied

Another factor easing the transition to apartment living is that spaciousness, including generous outdoor living.

Dominique says: "We like to think that we were one of the first developments to really adopt the concept of 'garden rooms' which are much more generous than the balconies of many apartments. Their widths and depths, combined with moveable privacy screens, allow you to virtually have another living room in the sky."

Real spaciousness is one factor which differentiates the village's five penthouses from others around town.

Three are still available.

These range from a $2.95 million, 234sq m layout with 64sq m of deck to a $4.75 million whopping 349sq m spread bolstered by 140sq m of outdoor living.

Rich Naish, of lead architect RTA Studio, says the village's park side location is comparable to New York's Park Avenue.

He designed the luxurious penthouses mindful that well-heeled owners may be downsizing but still desire really substantial space both indoors and out.

He's delivered big floor space with timeless luxurious decor opening to big decks with adjustable louvred roof coverings with rain activated sensors.

Rich says: "So really it's going to be like having a house and a garden but up in the sky."

RTA's resume includes Ironbank in Karangahape Rd and the Mackelvie St retail precinct in Ponsonby. They designed the village to a master plan by urban planners Civitas, in conjunction with Sydney-based architects Daryl Jackson Robin Dyke.

Dominique says demographics showing a cross-section of baby boomers, empty nesters, local families and young people purchasing promise a balanced, vibrant and diverse community.

Construction is scheduled for completion next year.