The Commons Hobart is a visionary new approach to urban living in Hobart, Tasmania, comprising thirty apartments and two retail lots located right in the centre of the city. The building, completed in 2020, was designed to demonstrate environmentally sustainable and socially cohesive urban residential development.
The Commons is an intentional, place-based community. Our intention is to live together harmoniously, with shared values that encourage residents to live sustainably with nature and the broader community. Rather than moving into an apartment with no idea who the neighbours are, Commons' residents are encouraged to connect and work together to build a vibrant community whilst also pursuing their own interests and lives.
The individual apartments were designed to achieve an average energy efficiency rating of 9 stars. Residents have access to shared rooftop gardens, a communal laundry, a common room for functions and meetings, and a private carshare program with two electric cars.
Sharing some resources across the community means a lower cost of living for residents. At the building stage, there were savings on installing multiple carparking spaces and individual laundries, and apartment sizes were economical. This resulted in lower building costs and hence lower purchase prices for all. On an ongoing basis, space heating and domestic hot water are provided by a common system which is highly efficient and which is also supported with solar PV electricity. This cost is shared amongst all owners via the proportional strata levy system. Low-cost sustainable transport is supported through provision of in-house EVs and generous bike parking facilities.
The Commons is an intentional, place-based community. Our intention is to live together harmoniously, with shared values that encourage residents to live sustainably with nature and the broader community. Rather than moving into an apartment with no idea who the neighbours are, Commons' residents are encouraged to connect and work together to build a vibrant community whilst also pursuing their own interests and lives.
The individual apartments were designed to achieve an average energy efficiency rating of 9 stars. Residents have access to shared rooftop gardens, a communal laundry, a common room for functions and meetings, and a private carshare program with two electric cars.
Sharing some resources across the community means a lower cost of living for residents. At the building stage, there were savings on installing multiple carparking spaces and individual laundries, and apartment sizes were economical. This resulted in lower building costs and hence lower purchase prices for all. On an ongoing basis, space heating and domestic hot water are provided by a common system which is highly efficient and which is also supported with solar PV electricity. This cost is shared amongst all owners via the proportional strata levy system. Low-cost sustainable transport is supported through provision of in-house EVs and generous bike parking facilities.
As an intentional, place-based community we contribute to the world in a meaningful way, and show how humans can live in greater harmony with nature and experience profound individual and social flourishing in an urban environment.
