How the work from home movement inspired Astrid's amenity in Castle Hill
Rolling lockdowns are a thing of the past, but what isn't is working from home.
At the census, albeit conducted in or around lockdown, 31 per cent of workers living in New South Wales were working from home, up from just five per cent at the 2016 census.
In Sydney, it was a jump from four per cent to 39 per cent.
And despite everything from cafes to borders reopened, the working from home trend is still continuing, which is making apartment developers rethink some of the amenity they are offering.
At Astrid, the latest Castle Hill apartment development to hit the market, the local developers went full throttle on the working from home spaces, in a more refined way that others.
Their focus was to build a working from home space which actually took you away from the home, however without actually leaving.
Not content with just creating study nooks (which they also have done in most the apartments), the developer went out of their way to offer extensive opportunities to work from a different space through the project.
One of the most unique spots to work from is the outdoor cabana (main image). The innovative space is fully solar powered and has its own wifi. It will use only sustainable materials and the power of the sun.
There's further work from home facilities in the Astrid Lounge, which provides a hub of work desks and lounges that are wifi-enabled and imbued in lush greenery.
"The idea for Astrid was that employees are working from home, but are often camped out on a dining room table or kitchen island," Turner Wolfe Director Matt Wolfe says.
"The developer went out of their way to create extensive, unique work from home facilities, which will give those buyers an option to get out of their apartments and work in an environment that's connected to nature, all without the commute."
Of course not all employees require an office settings. The rooftop terrace surrounded in landscaping and with extensive skyline views is another option for remote workers.
And when working from home, lunchtimes look a little different.
There's a resort-style swimming pool in the project, as well as a fully-equipped gym.
There are 94 apartments in the Zhinar Architects-designed Astrid, starting from $625,000 and ranging in price to $1.96 million.
Astrid sit in the booming Showground Precinct in Castle Hill, which is attracting significant investment including more restaurants and cafes, encouraging the dine-out lifestyle much closer to home.
