Community garden puts down roots at Midtown MacPark

• Herbs, leafy greens, fruits, vegetables and edible indigenous plants make up the mix
• Produce to be used by residents and in on-site social enterprise cafes
• Sustainability at the heart of new community

Future Midtown MacPark residents and neighbours joined forces with staff from Frasers Property Australia, Darcy St Project and Mission Australia to turn sods on what will be a well-established focal point for the local community when the first residents move in.

The community garden is made up of mobile self-watering garden beds from VegePod, along with some freestanding pots for taller and climbing plants.

The garden is part of Midtown MacPark’s community development program, which will deliver an integrated and inclusive mixed tenure community through amenities and initiatives designed to build connections between residents.

The plant mix includes a mix of indigenous and traditional edible plants including river mint, lemon myrtle, pig face, lilli pilli, yam daisy, chocolate lily, vanilla lily, basil, rocket, marigold, cos lettuce, hot peppers, parsley, coriander, salt bush, sweet corn, beans and zucchini.

Indigenous plants were supplied by Muru Mittigar and Indigigrow and educators from the Royal Botanic Gardens’ community greening project were on hand to donate plants and provide advice on planting and growing.

The resulting produce will be used by Darcy St Project’s two social enterprise cafes within Midtown MacPark, and their staff and trainees will tend the gardens through a series of working bees and education sessions.

About 30 staff from the Frasers Property, Mission Australia and Darcy St Project attended, along with neighbours from the surrounding area and future residents of the masterplanned Midtown MacPark community.

Frasers Property has achieved a 6-star Green Star communities rating for Midtown MacPark, and the shared garden is just one of the many sustainability initiatives embedded in the project.

Cameron Jackson, General Manager Development NSW, Frasers Property Australia, says the event was a way for future residents to meet their neighbours, and to learn something at the same time.

“While progress on the built form within this community is forging ahead, we’re spending just as much time on the public spaces and amenities which will make this place so special to live in,” he says. “By the time the first residents move in, the community garden will be well-established and thriving. We’re even hoping to provide jams and chutneys as a welcoming gift to residents made from the garden’s produce by the team at Darcy St Project.”

Midtown MacPark is a $2.1 billion masterplanned mixed use tenure community comprising approximately 3,300 apartments across three unique buildings — SOUL, MAC and Treehouse — as well as a selection of townhomes.

Shared and community facilities include a central park, pay-for-use gym and pool, pocket parks, walking trails, community centre and playgrounds. One third of the 8.2-hectare site is reserved for open space.

Development of the site includes the rehabilitation of an ecological corridor along Shrimptons Creek and the preservation of a forest of Sydney Turpentine Ironbarks. Stormwater will be harvested and reused in the community’s green spaces while mature trees within the site have been preserved.

Among the homes currently available for purchase are Treehouse apartments, with prices ranging from $695,000 for one-bedrooms, $990,000 for two-bedrooms and $1,605,000 for three-bedroom homes. A range of one-, two- and three-bedroom penthouses are also available, with prices ranging from $910,000 to $2,190,000. For more information on Midtown MacPark, contact Frasers Property on 13 38 38 or visit www.midtownmacpark.com.au.

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