Time & Place chases the lifestyle wave in Manly and has James Packer’s backing

The latest addition to Sydney’s beachside apartment scene by developer Tim Price will eschew chandeliers for surf board racks and comes with the financial backing of tycoon James Packer.

An artist's impression of Time & Place's development in Manly.

When busy developer Tim Price casts an eye over Manly beach it is usually for a surf. But his company, Time & Place, is now planning a boutique apartment complex that fits with the peninsula’s laid-back culture.

The group, best known for its high-end projects across Sydney and Melbourne, is taking an ­approach which will provide a mix of comfort and style, rather than overwhelming residents with luxury finishes.

“It’s not really about luxury,” Mr Price says.

His days working on Crown Melbourne – where he met Todd Nisbet, the former Crown Resorts executive who is now advising ­tycoon James Packer on his property investments – gave him a taste for beautiful materials and design.

And Mr Packer is providing ­financial support to the Manly low-rise complex that will have a mix of two and three-bedroom apartments.

Billionaire James Packer has backed the project. Picture: Aaron Francis

But this project will have a very different touch.

“We’re not a developer that throws chandeliers up and there’s not too much shiny gold in our projects; it’s usually more about liveability,” Mr Price says.

He is more interested in how the Manly project will work for residents – and in keeping the units breezy, open and ­spacious. “We are deliberately looking at some good-sized product,” he says.

Little touches such as surfboard racks and showers will be installed to appeal to locals.

The project is a far cry from the developer’s early involvement in Melbourne’s high-rise boom. It is still involved in developing offices and hotels.

Its Sydney record includes projects in Waterloo and Double Bay, as well as The Rocks where it is project development manager on The Harrington.

Its business model involves bringing in passive investors to back the projects. And that’s where the Packer involvement has arisen.

“Todd has an exceptional amount of development experience in different formats,” Mr Price says. “James has charged Todd with investing in quality projects.”

How an artist predicts the Time & Place project at Manly will look.

The match is working.

“They’re really passionate about projects in great locations and building a strength in that space,” Mr Price says. But there is no set formula. “They’re doing things in different locations; they’re not trying to build a portfolio.”

Having Mr Nesbitt around gives the developer a chance to bounce ideas around. “He’s happy to give an opinion, but their primary objective is to support us financially,” Mr Price says.

Mr Price knows Manly all too well. “I am a frustrated surfer that gets into the water as often as I can and I’ve always loved it,” he says. But, as a developer, he was not happy with what was on offer in Manly.

He wanted to avoid doing a project too large to be accepted by locals. Time & Place carefully amalgamated sites along Belgrave St and believes its planned four to five-storey complex will fit in well.

Mr Price is excited about providing apartments of a standard rarely seen in the area, saying: “There’s a demand level in Manly that hasn’t been satisfied around providing some larger-format living.”

The developer has recently drawn attention for its involvement in the funky Ace Hotel in Surry Hills. Mr Price says the big lesson is to make buildings that fit into their local neighbourhoods and are social and inviting.

Manly beach in Sydney. Picture: Rae Wilson

“There are so many aspects in that which I’m trying to incorporate in our buildings,” he says.

“I love the concept of our projects being almost like the old corner milk bar downstairs where people gather and it’s a point for connecting with other people,” he says.

“It’s not about luxury or exclusivity; it’s about how do we connect and make it relevant? And the liveability aspects.”

The Manly project is perhaps most in keeping with Time & Place’s latest batch of Melbourne projects which are targeted at the “right-sizer” market.

Its Camberwell project is appealing to well-heeled residents of that suburb and others in the blue-ribbon areas of Canterbury, Hawthorn and Kew.

At The Queensbridge Building in Southbank, Time & Place is developing 367 apartments and a luxury hotel. It is aimed at people getting into the market, downsizers and newcomers to Australia. “It will be the only building to finish in Southbank in 2025,” Mr Price says.

Pre-sales have been strong but Mr Price is in no rush to sell all the apartments, which are benefiting from the flight to quality projects.

He says: “I’ve got a strong view that prices will increase.”