- Darcy Street Project opens new café on-site
- Sales and Display Centre provides interactive, real-life glimpse of the Midtown lifestyle
- MAC Residences now selling
SYDNEY, 26 NOVEMBER 2020
Social enterprise café Darcy Street Project has come to Macquarie Park, serving specialty coffee at Midtown MacPark, Sydney’s next great urban neighbourhood by Frasers Property Australia.
Located within the new Sales and Display Centre, which officially opened last month, Darcy Street Project provides training and employment opportunities to early migrants, at-risk youth, disadvantaged students or those who have left school, indigenous people and people with disability.
“Frasers Property Australia’s vision for Midtown MacPark is about inclusion and diversity. This is our focus at Darcy Street Project as well. We share the vision of creating something for the community’s benefit to deliver a lasting, positive social impact, which is why we agreed to open our third outlet here,” says Darcy Street Project founder John Cafferatta.
John launched the project six years ago when he saw a gap in the market to provide job opportunities for young people without experience.
“Being a vocational teacher allowed me to look at training for employment in a different way,” he explains.
“No doubt there are a lot courses out there, but at the same time there is very minimal opportunity for young people to actually gain experience.
The approach at Darcy Street Project is to make it easier for young people to gain job experience and increase their confidence and employability skills.
“We focus on core skills like problem solving, critical thinking, presentation, communication, teamwork, creativity, digital and financial literacy – skills that are transferable and relevant in any job and industry.
“All my life I’ve been lucky to get jobs from different people. I have skills that I can pass on to others, so I would like to pay it forward,” he says.
The new café serves specialty coffee, fresh juices and a seasonal menu of healthy bowls, burgers and all-day breakfast.
“All the coffee we serve is ethically sourced. We will start off with one of my own custom coffee blends, which will be named the ‘Midtown Blend’,” explains John.
“We will be crafting different blends for the Midtown community per season while also bringing in guest roasters from all across the country.
“By rotating guest roasters, we hope to raise awareness for ethical organisations that are putting environmentally friendly measures in place,” says John.
All takeaway coffees are served in plant-based cups meaning they are compostable and biodegradable which helps minimise deforestation and climate change. The café is open from 8am to 3pm every day.
Interested buyers can grab a cup of coffee while exploring the housing options at the new Midtown MacPark Sales and Display Centre, which officially opened its doors to customers on 17 October. Potential buyers were treated to a sophisticated, interactive buying experience at the grand opening, where they took virtual tours around the new community and viewed the homes on offer via a video-game controller.
There’s also beautifully designed timber play equipment in the main sales area for children to enjoy.
A collaboration between COX Architecture and Hassell Landscape Architecture, the sales centre is nestled in a beautiful landscape setting and has been carefully designed to evoke an authentic feeling of what it will be like living at Midtown, demonstrating the connections between the homes and nature.
Nigel Edgar, General Manager Development NSW, Frasers Property Australia says the generosity of space within and around the display suite is a metaphor for the generosity of public open space which will be central to the new community.
“The display suite itself is raised above the ground to give prospective buyers a meaningful understanding of what it will really feel like to live in the neighbourhood,” Mr Edgar says.
“The display suite’s beautifully crafted illuminated staircase takes visitors on a journey from their everyday lives into a space where they can contemplate a new way of living. The expansive skylight above also heightens the generosity of the space,” he says.
The masterplan for Midtown, the new heart of Macquarie Park, sets it apart from other developments in the area. The new $2.2 billion1 mixed tenure community occupies an 8.2-hectare site, 33 per cent of which is open space.
It will feature a mix of approximately 3,300 apartments integrated with community facilities, a proposed primary school and two childcare centres, seniors’ living and aged care, a new 6,000 sqm central park, pocket parks and playgrounds, a community centre plus commercial pool and gym, and all the amenities for modern living within walking distance, underpinned by world-class design.
Available for sale now is a mix of apartments from one bedroom to two-storey penthouses in MAC Residences, the first building in the new masterplanned community which will frame the community’s entrance with a striking, distinctive architectural presence.
Midtown is about diversity, reflected in the wide choice of homes available. Pricing for one-bedroom apartments are $615,000 to $800,000, two-bedroom apartments are $820,000 to $1,030,000 and three-bedroom apartments are $1,395,000 to $1,450,000. There are also two-storey penthouses available, priced from $1,465,000 to $1,988,000. Most apartments in the 24-storey building will enjoy sweeping district views with a selection capturing the Sydney CBD skyline.
The Midtown MacPark Sales and Display Centre is located at 1 Ivanhoe Place, Macquarie Park. It is open daily from 11am to 4pm. For further information or to register your interest in Midtown MacPark, phone Frasers Property on 13 38 38 or visit www.midtownmacpark.com.au.