Q: What kind of connection do you have with the Seafarers site?

A: I’ve worked in Docklands for the last 10 years, so I’ve always been very fascinated with what was happening in the area. I wasn’t sure what was going on or what was going to happen to the site, but I always thought it was a great location. We have also spent time in Southbank, socialising, walking or even driving to see the Sheds, so we’ve seen the developments along that area. We were actually visiting The Boatbuilders Yard when we spotted Seafarers. After that, we immediately booked in a time to come and view the display.

Q: Are you familiar with the urban renewal aspect of Seafarers?

A: I was really intrigued by the process of reclaiming materials and items taken from the Goods Shed and am especially excited to see how they will then be incorporated into the site, as well as the hotel. We’ve been keeping an eye on the progress at the Shed, so it’s going to be iconic and exciting to see the result of the renovations, knowing where the wood had been taken from, its past life and being a part of the circular economy model. If it had been demolished and rebuilt, it wouldn’t have been for us to live.

Q: What features drew you to purchasing at Seafarers?

A: The design was certainly eye-catching. There’s been a number of new apartments popping up in Melbourne over the last couple of years, but we felt that they’ve all been pretty similar. We were really keeping our eye out for something that was going to draw us into the city. We really liked how oversized the Seafarers Residences were and that they were unique individually. The terrace was also a standout for us. Alongside the resident facilities, hotel integration and sustainability features, the landmark location was probably the biggest draw card for us. It’s the whole package!

Q: What are you looking forward to most about living at Seafarers?

A: It would definitely be the aspect of living in the city. We love Melbourne and we’ve lived in cities before but never in Australia. So, we’re really keen to enjoy Melbourne city life.

Aside from that, we did do some research into 1 Hotel and now I’m excited to experience the branded residences and the services that come with it. To be able to receive 1 Hotel amenities and services like room service and pantry restocking is honestly amazing. We spend a reasonable amount of time restocking the pantry, so that’ll be handy. We are moving out of our family home of many years, so we are excited to have a residence that is all about us.

Q: Which configuration did you purchase and how have you upgraded the design to make it your own?

A: We bought a three-bedroom, riverfront residence with floor to ceiling windows. Since we’re on the upper floors, we’ll also have a beautiful view to wake up to in the morning. There wasn’t much change to the floor plan to be honest, but we did add in USB ports and things like that for a desk arrangement in the third bedroom so that we could have it as a home office and a space for guests to stay over.

We also did some research and Nancy at Colliers was really accommodating throughout the process. We opted to purchase on-site storage units, which gives us the ability to utilise the apartment’s internal storage unit as a walk-in pantry. Sustainability is important to us, so we did add an electric car charging station to one of our parking spaces.

 Q: We’ve been in and out of pandemics and lockdowns, how did you find the overall purchasing process and experience?

A: It was an easy process, I think we bought the week before COVID hit, which was interesting timing, but we had the opportunity to visit the display suite. Everyone was responsive to our alterations and late amendments, things that we just hadn’t really considered at the time.