Habitat is currently under construction on a prime parcel of land in between the bustling Byron Bay Arts and Industrial Estate and Belongil Beach. The progressive project has come together at the hands of passionate and creative developer Brandon Saul, who believed that the concept of a ‘village lifestyle’ was lost with the introduction of cars. Habitat’s energy efficient design was created by local award-winning architect Dominic Finlay-Jones, whose brief was simple, yet innovative –  design a village for people to live and work in the one place and thereby reduce the reliance on a car for the daily commute.

Habitat is set to become a destination in its own right – the unique concept will bring like-minded people and businesses together, offering a sustainable lifestyle without compromising on style or comfort. The state-of-the-art project will feature a variety of commercial uses across six buildings, as well as a residential element featuring both live-in commercial terraces (commercial space at the front and residential behind) and unique warehouse-style residential lofts. Each of Habitat’s energy efficient buildings have been designed to utilise natural ventilation, natural light and thermal mass, which creates less reliance on mechanical cooling, heating and lighting.

The commercial/retail component of Habitat will launch around October, which will see the opening of a cafe and bar operator, plus a series of department store-style pop-ups, which will feature mostly local fashion and craft brands. The pop-ups will operate for about three months in the retail spaces, which will then be available for lease in early 2018. That is just the tip of the iceberg, so to speak – there is so much more goodness to come from this thoughtfully designed and totally innovative new community. Watch this space.