THE MARITIME APARTMENTS, 29-31 ANZAC AVE, AUCKLAND CITY
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ON OFFER:
ON OFFER: Freehold Central Auckland one bedroom and two bedroom apartments in a 16-storey building of 72 apartments. All have northeast facing balconies, two-bedroom ones have second balcony and second bathroom. Sized from 51sq m (plus 8sqm deck) to 88sq m (plus 22sq m across two decks). Top levels have sea views. *Underground parking available to buy.
SIZE:
59-110sq m.
PRICE INDICATION:
One-bedroom from $495,000; two-bedroom, two-bathroom from $895,000.
BODY CORPORATE:
From $2695 TO $5466 a year.
INSPECT:
Display suite open at 29 Anzac Ave 12 — 4pm daily.
SCHOOL ZONES:
Freemans Bay School, Ponsonby Intermediate, Western Springs College, Auckland Girls’ Grammar.
CONTACT:
Rita Haagner or Les Adcock, CBRE, 021 759 717 (Rita), 021 727 161 (Les).
It's the bane of many Aucklanders' lives -- the daily commute to work. A journey of 20 minutes or half an hour into the city in off-peak times can turn into a crawl of an hour or more if you get stuck in rush-hour traffic.
One way of avoiding lengthycommutes and the incredible waste of time they involve is to move closer to your job.
Rita Haagner, sales and marketing manager for the new Maritime apartment building, says many prospective buyers she's talked to have mentioned that getting to and from work more quickly is a major incentive for moving to the city.
"A lot of people tell me the commute is killing them," says Rita. "Traffic in Auckland is a nightmare and people are sick of it. Even in parts of Remuera, where it is quick and easy to get to town in off-peak time, it can take over an hour in the busy times.
"People don't have a lot of spare time on their hands these days, so it is driving them mad to be sitting in their cars for so long."
She points out that the residents of the Maritime may find their cars become surplus to requirements once they move in -- not only because they can walk to work, but because so many activities they enjoy in their leisure time are right on their doorstep.
"You can put that time you would have spent sitting in your car getting home from work doing much more enjoyable things that are in easy reach of the Maritime," says Rita.
The building's Anzac Ave location means it is extremely close to lots of the city's attractions as well as amenities such as supermarkets -- there is a Countdown just a few minutes' walk away.
The area has seen a huge amount of development in the past decade, with residential buildings going up, along with shops and restaurants, and facilities such as Vector Arena, which was opened in 2007. It's a far cry from how it used to be a generation or so ago.
Aucklander Judy Kean grew up in Anzac Ave because her parents were caretakers of number 9 in the 1960s and 70s, and lived in an apartment.
"It was all offices so once everybody went home at 5pm, the neighbourhood was dead," she says.
"The only restaurant was the Silver Grill on Customs St and when my parents wanted to do their grocery shopping, they had to get in the car and drive to LynnMall.
"To see it now is just amazing. It is a very vibrant part of the city, with so much going on. It would be wonderful to live there these days -- you could eat out at a different restaurant every night for months."
Maritime residents will be spoiled for choice when it comes to the things they can do near their new home. Options include:
Britomart precinct
The world-class Britomart precinct with its restored heritage buildings is home to bars, restaurants, shops and beauty spas. You can buy everything from cosmetics and designer clothing through to homewares and hosiery, eat Vietnamese, Japanese and French cuisine, have your hair done and nails done or meet friends for drinks in one of many bars.
There's also a farmers' market at Britomart every Saturday morning, bringing a little bit of the country to the city.
Just past the precinct is the easily accessed train station. It's only a seven-minute journey to Newmarket, if you fancy a change of scenery when it comes to shopping, or if you're after more of a day out, it's just over an hour to Waitakere.
Getting there: Seven-minute walk
Vector Arena
The 12,000-seat arena is a hot spot for sport and entertainment events. It has hosted basketball, netball and even ice hockey games, and musical acts have included Beyonce, Rod Stewart and Bon Jovi. Forthcoming concerts include Neil Diamond, Robbie Williams and Madonna.
Those extra hours you gain every week from not commuting can be put to very good use getting exercise. Les Mills has a fully equipped gym in the Britomart Precinct, where there is also a Peak Pilates.
Getting there: Seven-minute walk
Vector Arena from Quay Street. Photo/Greg Bowker
Queen St
Auckland's main shopping street is an easy flat walk from Anzac Ave. There's something for everyone -- and every budget -- in Queen St, including luxury stores like Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Prada and Christian Dior. Event cinemas has a huge complex further up the street, close to the Aotea Centre and Civic Theatre, which host a huge variety of top plays and musical events.
Getting there: Eight-minute walk to the bottom of Queen St.
This iconic old building is the gateway to so many more attractions around the Hauraki Gulf. Whether you fancy going for drinks in Devonport, swimming at one of one of Waiheke's stunning beaches or lunch at a vineyard there, or hiking up Rangitoto, they're all in easy reach. There is also a ferry service to the Coromandel Peninsula.
Getting there: Nine-minute walk
Albert Park
Dating back to 1880, Albert Park is one of Auckland's most historic and picturesque parks. It includes a bronze statue of Queen Victoria, a Boer War Memorial and a band rotunda.
The Auckland Council does a brilliant job of maintaining the gardens, and it's a lovely spot to chill out on a summer's day. It's also the venue for the extremely popular Lantern Festival every year.
Once you've sampled all the eateries and shops on your doorstep in Anzac Ave, you could venture a little further to Viaduct Harbour and, beyond that, Wynyard Quarter. There is a huge range of first-class waterside restaurants and bars to chose from and in summer open air movies are screened in Silo Park.
Getting there: 10-minute walk to the Viaduct and 15 to Wynyard Quarter.
