452-460 Victoria Street, Brunswick, VIC, Australia

Big ugly apartment blocks are far from uncommon around here. In a city that has such a tendency to sprawl, high density housing is the logical (if not the most attractive) step to take to try and manage things a little bit. Fair enough.

But does it have to look like THIS?

Ugly even for a construction site.

Yes, it's under construction. Most things are ugly when they're under construction. But this, I think, is in a class of its own. Not only is gigantic and imposing, dwarfing many of the pretty little Victorian era houses nearby, it uses some truly bizarre building materials. There's plenty of corrugated iron floating around. Normally used for roofing (but sometimes used for the entire house), it is an ugly but perfectly acceptable building material. However, have you ever heard of corrugated concrete? Let me introduce you.

I can't begin to understand.

As much as I'd like to believe this eyesore will be covered up once the place is finished, I have a horrible suspicion that this is going to be some kind of feature wall. I don't really know what's worse - this, or the shite I saw Walshe and Whitelock claiming as a feature wall in a recent Property Press. It was a brick wall. Inside. And no, of course it wasn't done well. It just looked like someone had transplanted a factory exterior into their lounge.

Luxurious ... as individual as the other 154 in the block.

I also love the way they're trying to sell these apartments as "luxury". I don't know about you, but when I think of luxury items, I think of large and expensive things that not many other people have. This place ticks the box for large, yes, but "luxury" does not bring to mind 155 suburban apartments made out of badly moulded concrete.

No wonder that little house looks so sad and dirty. It's lost the will to live.

Perhaps when this is finished, I'll do an update to confirm if the corrugated concrete remains or if the builders do a mercy killing and cover it up. Only time will tell! All I can say it the prospects are not altogether promising. Oh and they'd better build a roof. I don't think I can handle that amount of ugliness when it doesn't even have a roof. Please just start again, it's not too late!

Rating: Condemnable