The Moorings' curved brick inlay façade sets a high benchmark at Martha Cove.

The Moorings is a modern interpretation of the Mornington Peninsula. Embodying waterfront living at its best, these new apartments front directly onto Marina Martha Cove, and include spectacular views of Anchorage Park at the rear. It’s an inspired, immaculate design, to say the least.

Designed by Fender Katsalidis Architects (FKA), The Martha Cove Development Plan includes plazas, green spaces, restaurants, retail, and a variety of residential developments, from townhouses to The Moorings. And it was the talented team at Bayley Ward Architects who, as design developers, brought FKA’s design intent for The Moorings to life, with absolute style and attention to detail.

“Since this was the first building of the Martha Cove Development, we wanted it to be a flagship for what’s to come through the development as far as a quality and design standard is concerned,” Ron von Felden, Project Leader - Architecture, Bayley Ward Architects, says.

And what an exceptionally high bar they have set. In fact, the stunning brick inlay façade sets the scene for what owners and their guests will find inside - a warm and welcoming palette of natural materials. Plus open-plan living bathes the apartments in natural light and extends the indoors to the outside, offering views over Marina Martha Cove, Port Phillip Bay, and surrounds.

FKA’s design intent was to create a European heritage-style building, with a modern twist, and to celebrate the stunning foreshore and boardwalk. “To reflect this intent, we wanted honesty in the materials. So we used raw materials like concrete, galvanised steel, and brick; we really wanted to reinforce that rawness and the handcrafted elements,” Ron says.

Given that the majority of the building was being constructed using precast concrete, and to achieve efficiencies and deliver a high-quality result, Euro Precast suggested Robertson Façade System’s brick inlay system for the facade.

“I’d seen the brick inlay used in the past, and have always wanted to use it. And it was just perfect for this project. The building follows the crescent shape of Martha Cove, so we put a lot of thought into how the breakup of those panels could be used to subtly show that curve along the foreshore. And also to reflect it on the landside, which has a park and a plaza across the road. The breakup of those panels and the use of brick inlay allowed us to effectively express that curve” Ron explains.

Quite obviously, significant time was invested to make the panels look seamless across the entire length of the building. As Ron comments, “We worked hard on those precast joins to get the brick tiles down to an absolute minimum of mortar joints, to 10-15mm, so you don’t read the junctions between the panels.” Between Bayley Ward, Euro Precast, and Figurehead Construction, it was an absolute work of art.

The choice of brick tile all came down to aesthetics, to reflect FKA’s design intent to create a building that looked as though it had been there for some time. Bayley Ward selected a Rustic brick tile blend from Robertson’s Building Products: “We love the variation across the tile, it’s not uniform at all. The Rustic Red gives the variation and the Apricot tones add a beautiful highlight,” Ron remarks.

Of course, Balmain, the Developer, is exceptionally happy with the end result – the way it looks and the rate at which buyers are taking up the remaining apartments. And while in ten years’ time, some may not remember that The Moorings was the first building of the development to be completed, they will always recall and enjoy seeing the striking building with its curved brick inlay façade that greets them. It’s a brilliant team effort and a credit to all involved.

Architect:

• Architect (masterplan design): Fender Katsalidis, Masterplan Design, Martha Cove Development
• Architect (design development): Bayley Ward Architects, Design Development, The Moorings
• Product: Brick inlay system, with a custom Rustic brick tile blend
• Developer: Balmain Asset Management
• Builder: Figurehead Construction
• Precaster: Euro Precast
• Photographer: Emma Cross