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22 WARLEIGH GROVE

BRIGHTON

Warleigh Grove apartment developments, one being 60 apartments completed in 2008, the other being 22 apartments finished two years later, also showed Chow’s ability to think laterally. The first development here also provided an opportunity to become more integral to the planning system first hand. Adjacent to the North Brighton railway station, Warleigh Grove came with a height limit for a maximum of three stories. Surrounded by expensive properties, including luxury-style apartments, it was Chow’s innate feeling that there was an opportunity to provide a greater number of apartments than the guidelines set out. “Why shouldn’t younger people be able to enjoy the amenities Brighton has to offer?”

This reasoning appealed to the VCAT member hearing the case who agreed that ‘more, rather than less’ could achieve an optimum result, and approval for four levels was subsequently granted, creating a precedent in the process. Not surprisingly, all of the 60 apartments sold within two weeks, attracting first homebuyers who until then were contemplating a move away from the magic of the bay. The usual price of $9,000 per square foot was reduced to $6,000 or, in contractual terms, a reduction from $800,000 to $600,000, a sizeable difference for those with a mortgage.