WATCH: $63m retirement village rises up on Sunshine Coast

BREAKING: Construction starts today on an innovative $63m retirement village which will deliver 140 units in a design dubbed a 'vertical village'.

THEY'RE growing up and going up.

The new-wave of retirees, the city-slicking, apartment-owning oldies will be rolling into a new-look Kawana from early-2018, after construction started today on Stockland's $63 million Oceanside Retirement Village.

The first sods were turned this morning on the eight-storey development which will deliver 140 units, a combination of one, two and three-bedroom, dubbed a 'vertical village'.

Each unit will have a car parking space and there will be large amounts of visitor parking, but no specific caravan parking available for those grey nomads looking to settle into a lower maintenance lifestyle.

VISION: The new vertical retirement village at Oceanside. Picture: Stockland

The development marks the first of its kind in the Stockland portfolio and signals a possible shift in the way aged living is delivered in the region, with the new Maroochydore CBD also set to feature vertical retirement living.

All residents of the future Oceanside Retirement Village will be able to access a 660sq m clubhouse, gym, outdoor pool with decks and dining areas and the gardens will be fully landscaped and close to the new Kawana Health Precinct.

"By 2056 a quarter of our population will be over the age of 65. Vertical villages like this create options for older Australians to downsize and move into connected communities with centralised health and lifestyle services," Stockland Group executive and CEO of Retirement Living, Stephen Bull said.

"Today's retirees expect to live in beautiful places, demand a high level of services, and enjoy a great lifestyle. Oceanside will offer all of this and more, encouraging happier, healthier residents with world class health and wellbeing services right on their doorstep."

UNDERWAY: Work begins on the Oceanside Retirement Village. Picture: Stockland

A partnership with Opal will see residents able to transition from the retirement village into the nearby, 151-bed Opal Aged Care facility which provides higher, more acute care for the elderly.

There will be a variety of views on offer too, from ocean views, to canal aspects and even the Glasshouse Mountains.

The start of construction comes almost three months after the Daily revealed the plans for the retirement village as part of Stockland's $5 billion Oceanside development.

Stockland expects construction to be wrapped up by early-2018 on its new retirement village.

COMING SOON: A perspective of the retirement living building from the north west corner of the site. Picture: Stockland

Originally published as WATCH: $63m retirement village rises up on Sunshine Coast