A vertical retirement village on the Gold Coast has become the first new development to be built in Queensland with a 4 Star Green Star rating and a gold accreditation for accessible design.
The Verge at Burleigh’s first building, Jasmine House, achieved the 4 Star Green Star rating from the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) by using passive design principles including smart insulation, glazing selection, LED lighting and electric vehicle charging stations.
The rating distinguishes The Verge as ‘best practice’ in sustainable design and is the first Green Star certification on a greenfield site for the village’s operator, RetireAustralia.
RetireAustralia Senior Development Manager Judi Hutchinson said achieving the green rating and Gold Australian Liveable Housing accreditation was a major achievement.
“4 Star Green Star rating represents best practice in environmentally sustainable building practices, which is not only good for the environment but good for our residents as it helps keep energy and water costs down,” she said.
“The Gold Australian Liveable Housing accreditation recognises that the building has been designed in a way that it is easy to access and navigate as people age. An example of this is wider kitchen areas, which allows residents to use a mobility walker.”
Designed by specialist senior living architects O’Neill Architecture, Jasmine House at The Verge features various green elements including:
- Energy: Grey laminated glazing to provide low solar heat gain through window surfaces, construction of facades in alignment to solar pathway, ceiling fans to apartment bedrooms, living rooms and external balconies, low intensity LED lights, motion detection and lighting control
- Water: Reducing portable water consumption through water efficient design initiatives, namely the installation of high efficient WELs rated fixtures and fittings, water efficient appliances and an air cooled VRF plant
In addition, The Verge has also been designed to meet energy and water reduction targets.
The energy design for Jasmine House is a 40 per cent reduction in energy use in comparison to the Green Star standard benchmark. For water, the design is a 20 per cent reduction from the benchmark.
“The driver for this is two-fold – it’s good for the environment and helps keep operational costs down for residents,” Ms Hutchison explained.
GBCA’s Senior Manager of Market Engagement, Nick Alsop said the Green Star certification is a great outcome for RetireAustralia and the residents of The Verge.
“The Verge is a great example of a building that has been designed to be healthy for residents to live in, better for the environment and cheaper to run. We look forward to continuing to work with RetireAustralia on the next stage of development.”
The Verge is a staged vertical retirement village which, when complete, will consist of three six-storey buildings featuring expansive apartments that capture views of the adjacent Burleigh Golf Club course.
Stage one features 40 one, two and three-bedroom apartments and penthouses positioned along the fairway of the 10th hole, plus an innovative wellness centre.
RetireAustralia has applied for a 4 Star Green Star design rating for the second building, which is under construction and will include 66 independent living apartments.
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