Ugly 'Altitude' High Rise Apartments In Belconnen

johnboy said :

farq said :

Why is the lake blue in that picture?

Everyone knows that Lake G is brown and smelly.

If you look at the sky you’ll not ethe blues have had some work all around.

They’ve made it look like Sydney Harbour, all deep and blue and beautiful.

Sigh.

Have I missed something here? The picture looks fine, the apartment block doesn’t stand out, it actually has pretty nice proportions.

As a Belconnen local, I think these high rise developments are really positive. It will be fantastic to have more people in the town centre at night and on the weekends. And more international students = more diversity = more awesome food. Bring it on!

EvanJames said :

johnboy said :

And yet the most desirable addresses in Australia also have the highest density housing.

Vaucluse, Toorak and Mugga Way?

There’s lots of people living there, but the actually desirable addresses are generally standalone dwellings.

johnboy said :

And yet the most desirable addresses in Australia also have the highest density housing.

Vaucluse, Toorak and Mugga Way?

farq said :

Why is the lake blue in that picture?

Everyone knows that Lake G is brown and smelly.

If you look at the sky you’ll not ethe blues have had some work all around.

Why is the lake blue in that picture?

Everyone knows that Lake G is brown and smelly.

“And yet the most desirable addresses in Australia also have the highest density housing.”

You make a good point Johnboy. I doubt that Belco will ever have the real estate pulling power that inner city Melbourne and Sydney have however.

voytek3 said :

…that sky plaza in Woden is an even bigger eye sore. That building is horrific.

Since Sky Plaza went up, at least the developer can be sure this new highrise in Belco won’t be the single worst built, worst architected, and hands-down ugliest piece of crapola that ever saw the light of day. Sky Plaza is so bad when you’re facing away from it the howling cyclonic winds it generates can blow you over.

I don’t accept that very rapid growth is inevitable, or a good thing. It’s being artificially created, and the only people who are benefitting are those who can sell things to the increasing population. The rest of us get to endure high housing prices, low-quality housing, congestion and a lower quality of life.

Is it just me or is anyone else horrified by the Altitude Apartments being constructed between Chandler Street and Emu Bank in Belconnen?

Belconnen has an abundance of hideous apartment complexes. Netanya, Miramar, Waterside, and the catastrophically ugly development between Luxton and Beissel Streets to name the main offenders. By comparison Altitude looks pretty good. The tower part could almost be considered stylish.

As others have pointed out though, future development in the area will ensure that Altitude doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb for long.

risible said :

Tall buildings steal our sun in winter when we need it. The affluent can afford to buy penthouses with a view over the lake. The rest of us shiver through the shadow as we walk by.

harden up mate, no body get their lazy arse outside to enjoy the sun anyway, so it doesn’t make any differences.

Tall buildings steal our sun in winter when we need it. The affluent can afford to buy penthouses with a view over the lake. The rest of us shiver through the shadow as we walk by.

poetix said :

Pork Hunt said :

I’m in the lift game so reach for the sky I reckon.

What sort of altitude is that?

Yes, it did not go un-noticed 🙂

poetix said :

plumtree said :

And at only $450 rent a week for a one bedroom unit.

Is that really how much they will be leased for? That’s appalling. Is that typical rent for an apartment like that? (Please excuse my ignorance.)

Yep, and it’s only going to rise (no pun intended).

I quite like that artists impression – I think the scale fits quite nicely (maybe because of the elevation difference to Oracle/Cameron Offices and a touch of perspective) . We need to accept that if high-rises are a part of Canberra life in the early 21st century, then they might as well be in the most suitable place – ie near central infrastructure and town centres. The amount of apartment blocks being built miles away from amenities is what really galls me. Why does Flemington Road need to be flanked by 3-4 storey monoblock minitowers?

Hopefully this capitalises on, and pushes the Lake Ginninderra rejuvenation further.

plumtree said :

And at only $450 rent a week for a one bedroom unit.

Is that really how much they will be leased for? That’s appalling. Is that typical rent for an apartment like that? (Please excuse my ignorance.)

And at only $450 rent a week for a one bedroom unit.

So Belco now has its own Sky Plaza.

Truthiness said :

they’ll be bought up as investment properties for boomers and then rented out to the lost generation, further entrenching the debt cycle.

No, they’ll be bought by Gen X, some for investment, some for owner-occupiers. It’s getting a bit late for boomers to be buying property. The ones who are property investors have already owned for quite some time.

If I was nearing retirement, I wouldn’t be too keen on property as a major investment right now.

That said, rents will be expensive, and will continue to climb.

banco said :

I’d like to know who’s going to buy all these apartments that are going up?

Ah yes, the eternal question, I remember the days when Watson/Downer were being built. Who on earth would want to live *that* far out of town, what a joke!

Then came the 1970s, I drove past Giralang, where are all the people going to come from?

Then I heard the phrase, “build a road and they will come” and now I no longer ask.

Remember that Kambah was to be the last suburb, that’s why they made it so big. Ha ha.

Don’t worry about public service cuts, that’s always an illusion, (election time speak)

Don’t worry about iron ore prices, the market will sort that out.

they’ll be bought up as investment properties for boomers and then rented out to the lost generation, further entrenching the debt cycle.

I’d like to know who’s going to buy all these apartments that are going up? There must be half a dozen large apartment developments in Belconnen alone. The spivs (also known as property developers) may be in for a rude shock with the public service cuts and the falling iron ore price.

Looking at some of the other buildings in the supplied shot it looks to me as though the Altitude Apartments will do an acceptable job of improving the architectural sights in the Belconnen Town Centre.

Although, as you can see, that’s not a difficult task.

Ugly and Belconnen go hand in hand.

Let’s have more high rise in all the town centres to increase the population density. It is good for the environment, public transport and night life.

Lol @ nimbys

If we are going to have high density it makes absolute sense to put it in the town centres.

These apartments will be pretty expensive, I’d reckon.

Pork Hunt said :

I’m in the lift game so reach for the sky I reckon.

What sort of altitude is that?

I’m in the lift game so reach for the sky I reckon.

I don’t know what they will look like until they’re finished, but I like the idea of a few more people around the town centre. Particularly once the weather warms up I think it will see the paths and parks around the lake used a lot more.

Yes I’d have to agree, was out at Belconnen on Friday. We were looking at the Bus stations to see how Woden Bus interchange will be upgraded. The Community Bus station will be completely overshadowed by the new Sintenel towers and will create even more wind. than is there already.

That’s the trouble with High rise developments while not being that energy efficient they create a negative impact at the ground level with increases in the down shaft of winds and cold shadowed areas particularly in winter.

That’s why the WVCC doesn’t support more high rise in the Woden town centre because of the negative impacts of Lovett tower has on Woden square. You don’t need High rise to create high density.

Was driving past it the other day, I think the ugliest part is the design of the two smaller blocks. From Chandler st all you see is concrete and more concrete. I thought there’d be more glass like Oracle, but there’s not. It’s a concrete monstrosity. the tower itself doesn’t bother me, I guess it depends from what angle you’re coming from.
I was interested in buying in Altitude (I like apartment living) but once I saw the floor plans which just seemed small and impractical in shape I was turned off.

As others have said once Sentinel on the other end of the bus station takes shape altitude won’t be alone in the Belco vista, so it won’t look so bad. I just hope Sentinel doesn’t end up to be a concrete monster either…

There’s a really simple solution if you don’t like it – don’t live there!

Goddamn NIMBYs in this town have a really big definition of their backyard – covers the whole frickin city.

Obviously those of you so offended by the aesthetics are not offended by the fact that Canberra has what must be the highest house prices for a city its size anywhere on this earth – in no small part due to the likes of you.

So, the two ugliest and controversial apartment buildings are both on Club land.
Amazing how we hide it in plain sight, isn’t it?

As blocks of flats go, I’ve seen worse. That’s not to say that they’re not horrible.

It is instructive to look at the history of the block of land upon which the Altitude rests. Originally granted to the Labor club for extensions to the club rooms, the club held an option on the block for decades. Then amendments to land use, and subsequent interest from developers, and then subsequent upward revisions to the proposed number of floors to be built, with no new shadow impact. In sum, mutually beneficial to both developer and the labor party. It is also instructive to look at party donations. Get yourselves educated about how Canberra runs.

After Sky Plaza nothing seems so bad.

“It just seems a shame that from which ever direction you approach the Belconnen Town Centre now this Ugly High Rise sticks out like a sore thumb.”

You mean like Woden.

Don’t worry. There’s another one going up along Benjamin way opposite the Bel Health center. That should even things out.

Its no worse than other buildings. Besides, it a town centre, its suppose to have high rise buildings to promote sustainability, transport efficiently etc..
We need more of them, IMO.
If you dont like it, dont live in a town centre.

It won’t be alone for long – Sentinel, which is going up in the old carpark next to the community bus station, will dwarf it at 20 storeys high. There’s also another small block of flats with shops at the underneath going into the area that the abandoned Pizza Hut occupied, directly in front of Altitude.

At least the empty bus station will get more business! I’m not horrified because it make so much more sense to get people who don’t want a backyard into a central location where they don’t have to drive everywhere. More green space for the rest of us,

Not as bad as that hideous tower in Woden town centre

buddy you crack me up.

It might ‘stick out’ for now, but it’s about to be joined by Linq, Sentinel (“two towers resting on a 5 storey platform above the road”…) and Westfield have a proposed development of about 20 storeys next to their carpark in front of the lake. If your point is that it’s ugly because it sticks out, I guess it won’t be ugly for long.

Agreed. I didn’t think it possible for Belconnen to become even more of a hole. Sometimes I have to go out that way for work and always think “God…those building are such an eyesore” but that sky plaza in Woden is an even bigger eye sore. That building is horrific.