Green Star rating
6 Star Green Star – Design & As Built
Location
Kensington, Wurundjeri Woiwurrung Country (Victoria)
Certification
2026
Type
Apartment building
6 Star Green Star – Design & As Built
Build-to-rent (BtR) is a redesign of what Australian’s have come to expect from the rental market. These are apartment buildings designed exclusively for renters, not owner occupiers or investors, with teams like Victoria’s Local Residential leading the way.
Local represents this shifting market in Australia, and their newly certified 6 Star Green Star Design & As Built project, Local Kensington, on the lands of the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung and Bunurong Boon Wurrung peoples of the Kulin Nation, is a prime example. With the mission of creating quality rental living in Australia, this Green Star BtR project offers leases up to five years for residents, in well-connected neighbourhoods with high-performing, comfortable apartments, built with a rapidly changing climate in mind.
Design goals
National architecture practice, Hayball, lead the design of Local Kensington, with Principal David Jessup, at the helm of the ship.
The initial goal was to provide a high-quality built-to-rent development comprised of private apartments and communal amenities that integrate respectfully with the industrial character of the neighbourhood. Sculptural architectural forms comprised of tactile materials, including masonry and concrete, provide engaging details for residents and passers-by.
But beyond the response to the surrounding area was the response to the climate, which was met with light-colour roofing materials to reduce the heat island effect, water harvesting, a rain garden, and more.
The value of pursuing a Green Star rating
The decision to make Local Kensington Green Star rated was a no-brainer for Peter Smith, General Manager of Development Delivery at Local Residential.
“Kensington was always conceived as a long-term Build to Rent asset. And, in that context, sustainability affects operating costs, resident comfort, resilience and the building’s ability to remain competitive over time,” explained Smith.
The business case was straightforward. Kensington’s 6 Star Green Star Design & As Built v1.3 target, 7.8 Star average NatHERS rating and 4.5 Star NABERS target, position it as a high-performing, institutionally managed residential asset rather than a minimum-compliance apartment project. Green Star Design & As Built assesses sustainability outcomes across nine impact categories and requires follow-through during construction, handover, tuning and commissioning, not just design intent.
“For a BtR owner-operator, better thermal performance, lower resource use and stronger commissioning supports lower operating costs and better long-term building performance. In a hold model, those benefits compound over time rather than disappearing at settlement,” said Smith.
The Green Star aspirations were supported by everyone onboard, perhaps most importantly, by the architects at Hayball. Sustainability strategies were explored from project inception and embedded into the builder’s contractual documents.
As the Sustainability Lead on the project, Hayball Associate Jean-François Laroche was quick to credit the leadership of the project’s ESD consultants.
“The creativity of Atelier 10 during the design phase fuelled a collaborative process informed by workshops and numerous iterations to arrive at the agreed strategy. Cundall became involved during construction, and their thoroughness and care for the built outcome was notable. Achieving the 6 Star ‘As Built’ certification is such a welcome endorsement of this process.”
Independent frameworks, such as Green Star, provide certification that stakeholders can trust. When it comes to build-to-rent projects like Local, it sets a transparent standard for social, environmental and operational performance – which ultimately reduces risk and gives investors, and communities, confidence that the sustainable and social outcomes are verified and real.
No place for short term thinking
On combating the narrative that it’s too expensive to build efficient, resilient and sustainable residences – Smith was matter-of-fact.
“There isn’t really a place for short-term thinking at Local.”
“For one, we’re in the 2% of developers with B Corp certification, which means the environment and social outcomes are part of our DNA. Beyond that, long-term modelling is simply how we evaluate assets – running costs over a long period of time as well as holding asset value in a future market are significant factors,” said Smith.
The HVAC decision at Kensington is a good example. Local commissioned Arup to model options and found decentralised split systems outperformed centralised systems across energy efficiency, lifetime carbon, refrigerant leakage and 30-year cost of ownership.
“That single decision is estimated to save up to $10 million in development cost, while saving residents around $140 to $190 a year on energy bills,” explained Smith.
The building also negotiates one electricity contract for the whole site, extending green energy access to residents who would not otherwise be able to access it as individuals.
Standout sustainability features
Local Kensington’s sustainability story is strongest as a whole-building performance strategy backed by clear targets indicating a focus on design quality, resident comfort and operational performance. These include:
- 7.8 Star average NatHERS rating
- 4.5 Star NABERS target
- 200kW rooftop solar supplemented by 100% GreenPower procurement
- 96% diversion from landfill
- Exposed concrete slabs for thermal mass
- Decentralised HVAC
- Rainwater harvesting, low-flow fixtures and drought-tolerant planting
- Waste management streams covering recycling, organics, donations and e-waste.
Incorporating nature and supporting local biodiversity with and around the homes was tackled by landscape architect Openwork alongside the project team at Local and architects, Hayball.
Connections to nature are enjoyed throughout the site, with drought tolerant native planting distributed across street interfaces, the large central courtyard, and the rooftop terraces, with landscape architect Openwork collaborating alongside the project team at Local and architects, Hayball.
This was backed by 33,000 litres of rainwater collection for irrigation, drip-line watering systems and low-flow WELS fixtures in the residences that deliver a greater than 20% reduction in predicted potable water use across the building. The landscape has been designed to stay healthy and green without a heavy water footprint, which was both an environmental and operational commitment for the team.
Material choice and the impact on sustainability
According to the architects behind the build, once construction commenced, three key material choices impacted the project’s sustainability outcomes.
Firstly, the specification of low carbon concrete required 40% of coarse aggregate to be recycled and resulted in a 30% reduction in Portland cement by mass across the project. Secondly, the contract documents required that minimum 95% of structural and reinforcing steel was sourced from a Responsible Steel Maker and minimum 60% of fabricated steelwork was supplied by a fabricator accredited to the Environmental Sustainability Charter of the Australian Steel Institute. Finally, all carpentry timbers were required to be certified by a forest certification scheme to meet the Green Building Council of Australia’s ‘Essential’ criteria, or from a reused source, or a combination of both.
Social value of build-to-rent
According to Smith, the beauty of build-to-rent is that it gives a single owner-operator the ability to think longer term about service, security, community and resident experience. Something that team at Local believe is a missed opportunity if ignored.
“Social value at Kensington sits within a broader Local commitment to integrate Impact Housing into every project, with a minimum 10% allocation for cohorts including key workers, women over 55 at risk of homelessness and Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) residents.”
For Dan McLennan, founder and Co-CEO of Local residential, said there were two driving factors for creating Local. The first was that he saw the focus on luxury premium BtR, and a gap for high quality housing that was attainable. The second was to provide an opportunity for those who can’t get their foot in the door.
“The time I spent working at Summer Housing provided insight into the experience of people who are excluded from the market. You can change a life by providing a home for someone who is otherwise excluded. That’s what drives me,” explained McLennan.
Hayball’s design approach also lends itself projects that centre social value and community.
These community benefits are optimised by a site strategy that distributes the building mass as a neighbourhood of smaller elements grouped around a central courtyard, increasing the sense of address for residents and decreases the perception of scale.
The apartment mix is diverse and includes Liveable Housing Australia (LHA) Gold units for elderly residents and Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) units and those living with a physical disability.
The project also takes seriously the potential of communal amenities as a driver for building community in a built-to-rent context. Hayball’s Project Principal Luc Baldi was animated when describing the role of design in facilitating residents’ connections with their neighbours.
“There are numerous opportunities to connect and socialise when enjoying the swimming pool, lounge, cinema, communal dining, games room, shared workspaces, and art studio!”
Advice for those pursuing Green Star in residential
For the team at Local, the practical advice is clear: make sure you have alignment early and tie the rating target to the asset strategy.
“Decide early and ensure wider project team are aligned. Not only will it make the certification more straightforward without trying to offset or retrofit solutions at the critical late stages of construction, but decisions integrated into areas like the slabs improve comfort long term for a better outcome,” said Smith.
Don’t forget to tie the rating target to the asset strategy.
“For residential, especially BtR, Green Star works best when it is linked to long-term operating performance, resident comfort, resilience and cost control. If the project team sees it as a brand exercise, it gets cut the minute pressure lands,” explained Smith.
And finally, focus on comfort and operational efficiency.
“There’s no point trying to chase “green” ideas that sound good in theory, but don’t perform. You want to be able to stand behind each investment into sustainability for something greater than bragging rights at a conference,” Smith concluded.