$140m new retirement village planned
Bethlehem is to become home to another multi-million dollar retirement village, with construction of a $140 million development scheduled to begin midway through next year.
Located at the north-western end of Bethlehem Rd, the development will be a sister village to the Bethlehem Country Club and will transform a 17-hectare block of land, currently planted in kiwifruit and avocado.
Designed by Fraser Sanderson, the developer who built the $54 million Bethlehem Country Club and several other Western Bay retirement villages, the new waterfront development, called Bethlehem Country Club West, will include 180 stand-alone houses, 80 apartments, and a clubhouse with dining areas, a bar, snooker room and movie theatre.
As well as having access to an on-site health spa and croquet green, residents will be able to share clubhouse and recreation facilities with the Bethlehem Country Club folks over the road.
With panoramic views of the harbour from Mauao to Omokoroa, the block of land is arguably the best available in the Bethlehem area, Bethlehem Country Club manager Gary Curtis said.
Work will begin in the middle of next year and will be continued in four stages over five years, he said. Most of the homes will cost between $500,000 and $800,000 with completion dates scheduled for late next year. The village will include walkways, and link up to estuary walks, Mr Curtis said
"The village design emphasis is very much on lifestyle with modern housing, a northern living aspect, spacious green areas and views.
"It will be a village where you live in a positive and vibrant community environment."
The Sanderson Group also has plans to build a "high-quality, modern, 120-bed hospital care facility and serviced apartments" on the corner of Carmichael Rd and Bethlehem Rd.
Construction of the hospital facility would begin in 2015. Carmichael Rd is also home to the $120 million Bob Owens Retirement Village which opened in June.
