By Ethan Benedicto
Berwick Waters in Clyde North saw a boom in sales around late June, with 44 per cent of lots in Emerald Bend being sold in a single weekend.
These lots went at such a fast pace that an additional 20 lots from the nearby Amethyst Release were brought forward to meet demand.
Home investor Inderjit Kaur Sandhu, who purchased three lots of land at Emerald Bend said that the appeal lies with the area’s amenities.
“People are going crazy to buy lots in Berwick Waters because everyone wants to give their kids a better place.
“Whenever people invest money, invest in a property, they think about the potential,” which Ms Sandhu is confident Berwick Waters has.
Emerald Bend itself is situated near Soldiers Road, east of Berwick Cranbourne Road, and will be accessible through Honour Avenue and soon Thompsons Road via Bells Road.
The area’s vision included amenities such as two ovals, an indoor sports centre, a town centre, a tree walk park, wetlands and the addition of the upcoming Clyde North Secondary School and Clyde North Primary School.
However, Frasers Property Australia’s general manager of development, Sarah Bloom, said that the popularity of the new release wasn’t something unexpected.
“The Terracotta Release was the first land lot release in Berwick Waters in 2024, add to the fact that this is such as well-established community of more than 4000 residents.
“A new state primary and secondary school are set to open for the 2025 school year, and the Treewalk Park is well underway and it’s not surprising buyers were keen,” she said.
Ms Sandhu recalled that when she was in the process of purchasing the first block, she quickly checked all available amenities in the area, and said “within one hour I went for it”.
“Casey Central and Fountain Gate shopping centre are nearby, but that area is actually a ‘city’.
“Everything is nearby, you have everything,” she said.
However, concerns for the neighbouring infrastructure are still rife, with Berwick MP Brad Battin voicing his concerns on the availability of Bells Road during the Legislative Council assembly on 1 August.
Speaking on families who reside in Orana Estate, Mr Battin said that one family who has to take their children to school “currently cannot go down the very short road which would go straight to the new school down in Clyde North”.
“They have to go out on Pattersons Road, along Clyde Road, back down Thompsons Road, taking about 35 to 40 minutes.
“That is about two hours out of the day for each of those parents picking up and dropping off their students,” he said.
Specifically on Bells Road, Mr Battin referred to it as an “important road”, a “connector road” that the government has “failed to deliver”.
“The reason this is important is because we have got a letter from the Minister for Transport Infrastructure to state that this road is open.
“When you visit the road, you cannot drive on it, you cannot walk on it, you cannot have any traffic lights on it, you cannot build on it and there are no lines on it,” he said.
The Minister for Transport Infrastructure’s office has been contacted for additional information, but they were unable to reply before deadline.
Ms Sandhu acknowledged that infrastructure is a major issue being faced by a majority of suburbs in the southeastern corridor, with mobile connectivity being another.
However, while difficult, she said patience is a needed factor, and that “it hurts, but we need to think about what happens later on”.
“Right now Soldiers Road is horrible, Bells Road isn’t open yet, so I understand, where are people going to go?
“But when they open, it’s going to be fine, we will wait and definitely it’s going to be okay,” she said.
However, Mr Battin isn’t easily swayed, with his calls and residents’ concerns on congestion still sounding strong with the safety issues on Thompsons Roundabout having been raised “for a long period of time”.
“What is worse is the funding that is in the budget for this is not to actually do this project for about four years.
“The southeast communities deserve better,” he said.
