A $210 million over-50s community featuring a suite of luxury amenities including a resort-style pool, bowling alley and yoga space, is set to launch in Bohle Plains in the coming months, after receiving approval from Townsville City Council this week.
The 295-home gated lifestyle resort, by leading family-owned developer Living Gems, will be built on a 13.6-hectare parcel at 99 Hogarth Drive, within Maidment Group’s Harris Crossing community in the city’s fast-growing west.
Early works have already started on the site, with Townsville civil construction business, Mendi Constructions, appointed to complete the first stage of activity.
Living Gems Harris Crossing is the first community to be developed in Living Gems new portfolio, after it sold all its eight established lifestyle resorts to AVID Property Group last year (2024).
It will also be one of the first land lease communities to be built in Townsville since the 1970s and is designed to meet significant demand from its ageing population.
Living Gems Director and CEO Adrian Puljich said Census data showed more than a third (34.3 per cent) of Townsville’s residents were over 50, equating to about 80,000 residents.
“A significant portion of those will be looking to downsize in the years ahead, making communities such as these critical to providing appropriate housing,” he said.
“To date, the options for downsizers have been few and far between—and certainly, there’s been nothing of this type or scale.
“Living Gems Harris Crossing will provide a new alternative, where they can free up time, free up capital and enhance their lifestyle all at the same time. We’re anticipating it will appeal to buyers not only from Townsville, but right across the North Queensland region, as far south as Mackay.”
Mr Puljich said Living Gems Harris Crossing would include more than $16 million of exclusive resident facilities, across an architect-designed Summer House and Country Club.
Simply lifechanging
“These two facilities will be the beating heart of the community. A place for residents to come together, form new connections, and stay fit and healthy,” he said.
“The great thing about over-50s communities is that residents can be involved as much or as little as they like.
We’ve designed the facilities to include something for everyone—from a workshop to a golf simulator, dog run, RV parking, and tennis and pickleball court, there’s a lot to choose from. “Making these opportunities easily accessible is so important to keeping our over 50s connected, active and enjoying their quality of life.”
Mr Puljich said the low-maintenance homes featured either two bedrooms or two bedrooms plus a multi-purpose room, and would be available in four different designs.
“The emphasis is on the lifestyle, with easy, low-maintenance living so residents can spend their time enjoying the facilities and the things they love. The gated security means they can also ‘lock and leave’ if they want to travel,” he said.
“The homes are carefully designed to allow residents to age-in-place if they choose to, meaning they’re suitable from their over 50s and beyond.
“As a land lease community, residents own their home and rent the land. This lowers the cost to buy and means they benefit from any capital gain if they choose to sell.
“The rent portion covers all the facilities, site maintenance and management, so there’s nothing for them to do, and there’s no entry fees, exit fees or stamp duty, which can be associated with retirement villages.”
Living Gems purchased the site from Maidment Group last year (2024), with the over-50s lifestyle resort to complement the surrounding Harris Crossing masterplanned community, popular with young buyers and families.
“This is one of the city’s fastest-growing regions and over 50s are keen to get a foothold in the area to benefit from its significant planned growth, along with the established amenities already in place including shopping, dining and entertainment,” said Mr Puljich.
“With so many young families moving here, there’s also a desire to be close to children and
grandchildren living in the area. It will complement the existing development underway and add to the area’s vibrancy.”
Living Gems has delivered more than 2,000 land lease homes across Queensland since being established in 1982 by Mr Puljich’s father, Peter Puljich.
For more information on Living Gems Harris Crossing, visit www.livinggems.com.au.
