Shenton Park apartment lifestyle offering new opportunities for families

While a house and land still appeal to many Perth buyers, at Hesperia’s Victoria House the opportunity to create a bespoke, supersized apartment proved too tempting for one family to pass up.

Hesperia’s development in Montario Quarter’s village precinct will comprise heritage-listed Victoria House and three new buildings – Ochre, Umber and Siena – offering 80 one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments.

Derek Vertannes and his partner Rachel Schairer purchased two residences at Victoria House to create a 250 square metres custom penthouse.

They made the decision to farewell a four-bedroom, three-bathroom house on an 823 square metre City Beach block in favour of their new home in Shenton Park, seeking a lower maintenance lifestyle.

“We are keen to focus on what is important in our later years — minimum time spent looking after our space…and more time spent with each other and around a community environment,” Ms Schairer said.

“We’re looking forward to living in more open, rationalised living spaces and enjoying the outdoor areas, like our balconies, as well as the ground common spaces.”

One of just 14 residences in the Ochre building, the combined top-floor four-bedroom, two-bathroom home purchased by Mr Vertannes and Ms Schairer will feature a flexible floorplan catering to the couple and their son Gabriel, plus 50 square metres of balcony space and a triple aspect that is rare in Perth apartments.

The finished residence will also boast extra luxuries including as a butler’s pantry, powder room, and a fireplace dividing the living and dining areas.

Ms Schairer said the central location, unique brick elevation and greenery, plus thoughtful features such as double glazing, 2.8 metre ceilings and sustainable elements, had guided the decision to purchase at Victoria House. She said the smaller scale than other apartment buildings was a major deciding factor, along with Hesperia’s reputation as a developer.

Hesperia director Kyle Jeavons said making changes to plans once a project’s design was finalised could be challenging but posed exciting opportunities.

“Given Victoria House is made up of three small buildings with fewer residences per floor, there was an exciting opportunity to create a new layout that has natural light and views on three sides,” he said.

“We worked with our project architects and interior designers to create a really special place that was exactly what Rachel and Derek are looking for.”

Mr Jeavons said Victoria House had attracted a diverse group of buyers, reflecting the range of different products and prices on offer.

“A project like Victoria House allows families to be part of a community in a prime location with amenity while having plenty of space,” he said.

“Having a mix of demographics will make for a great community to be part of.”

Victoria House’s project team includes MJA Studio, FINESPUN, Palassis Architects and Place Laboratory. PACT Construction will begin work in the coming months, with construction expected to be completed in late 2022.