Aware, Altis Convert Crown’s Waterloo Project to BtR

Aware Real Estate and Altis Property Partners may develop build-to-rent towers up to 20-storeys high just south of Sydney after picking up Crown Group’s Mastery project for $121 million.

The near-1.7ha site was sold unconditionally as part of Crown Group’s liquidation due to a long-running dispute between its co-founders.

It was the last site within the high-rise section of Lachlan Precinct at 44-48 O’Dea Street, Waterloo, 3km south of the Sydney CBD.

The transaction adds to Aware Real Estate’s $3-billion development pipeline that includes a number of build-to-rent projects.

Earlier this year the partnership purchased Bayview on the Park hotel at 50-52 Queens Road in Melbourne for $72.7 million and plan to create 300 build-to-rent apartments on the site.

Many of the residental apartments within Crown Group’s Mastery project were sold years ago and early works on the site had begun.

The community was expected to be completed in 2021, however, this was disrupted by the pandemic and again when Crown Group went into liquidation.

▲ A render of one of the buildings at the Mastery project in Waterloo designed by Koichi Takada for Crown Group.

The $500-million Mastery community would have included 368 apartments across five towers of 6- to 20-storeys.

The central tower designed by Kengo Kuma was the “crown jewel” of the project featuring a “stacked forest” and views towards the CBD, Botany Bay and Centennial Park.

The other towers designed by Koichi Takada & Associates and Silvester Fuller included a 2400sq m “Japanese-themed” retail precinct with two luxury residential buildings and two boutique hotels.

Aware Real Estate chief executive Michelle McNally said they could notsay if they would go ahead with Crown Group’s plans or create a new vision for the site.

However, it was confirmed the deal would “unlock a new affordable housing stock in one of Sydney’s most desirable inner suburbs” and be part of Aware Super’s build-to-rent portfolio.