For the residents of Mirvac’s Ashford Residences in Everton Park, Brisbane, The Ashford Club satisfies the yearning for escape without the need to pack a bag, book a ticket or board a plane. Home is where the holiday is.

For those drawn to ecotourism retreats, Ashford Residences and its recreation club hold special appeal, overlooking a one-hectare rehabilitated eco area and adjoining parkland.

The landscaping serves a dual purpose in creating a kind of alternate reality where you can be in your own world while also regenerating a critical ecosystem. A heady mix of guilt-free resort style indulgence set in a natural wonderland.

Edwin Dacre, landscape architect from Urbis, says the focus was on using the eco area as an anchor for the entire Ashford Residences community and continuing the theme in the recreation club.

“We took our cues from the eco area and borrowed elements from the streetscape to ensure fluidity,” says Mr Dacre. “You can gaze across a vista of low, soft green foliage to large, established trees, and feel secluded from neighbours with a sense of being in your own world.”

The eco area is an extension of Kedron Brook but had become degraded over time. Rehabilitating it to perform ecological and treatment functions was one of the key outcomes of the development. And it’s not only Ashford residents who benefit from the attention paid to restoring the natural environment. 

“Blurring the line between Kedron Brook and the site was the logical thing to do in terms of enhancing fauna movement and habitat on site,” says Mr Dacre. “It also created a visual buffer to the new houses providing separation from the public path along the brook. It not only enhances the privacy of the new homes but provides natural amenity and shade to users of the path.”

Mirvac General Manager, Residential Development QLD, Warwick Bible, says the natural environment is just as important to customers as the lifestyle inclusions offered at The Ashford Club.

“The Ashford Club presents a great way for residents to relax and entertain family and friends and also get to know their neighbours,” says Mr Bible. “This is a vital part of building community and winding back the sense of aloneness that can arise in any suburb or town.

“Aligned to that is a heightened awareness that we need to treat the environment with respect; to not just consume resources but to give back.

“The development of Ashford Residences has resulted in huge gains for the environment and the enjoyment of this special place by our residents and everybody who visits or passes by Kedron Brook. It shows just how inseparable people and place are in the way Mirvac approaches new residential communities.”

It is a remarkable living environment for those who have made their home at Ashford Residences, a mere 7km from the Brisbane CBD and a world away from the ordinary. Says Mr Bible: “The Ashford Club sets the benchmark for placemaking at its best, truly understanding that quality of life is about more than the built form. It’s about creating environments that nurture a sense of belonging and pride and leaving a place better than the way we found it.”

This philosophy was clearly understood by Daniel Volpato, Director of Brisbane architects Ellivo whose brief from Mirvac was to create a recreation facility ‘on par with the best in Brisbane’. In setting a high bar for resident amenity there was tacit acknowledgement that the new wave of Mirvac apartments in the CBD had luxury inclusions rarely seen in masterplanned communities.

“We really wanted to provide a facility that is well used and loved by the residents,” says Mr Volpato. “There is a wonderful synthesis between the natural landscape and the built form with strong architectural elements softened by lush landscaping. 

“This creates a variety of unique spaces that feel like a natural extension of the neighbouring eco area, the two spaces seem to bleed into each other. It feels like you are surrounded by parkland while enjoying luxurious facilities.”

The resort style pool is the centrepiece of the Club, extending out to the eco area edge. A barbecue and teppanyaki grill encourage gatherings centred on good food and good company while a generous lawn sets the scene for sunbathing or a play space for children.