Peter Bourke (left) with prospective residents Peter and Pamela Russell at the Carlaw Park site in Auckland’s Parnell.

 Retirement village developer Vision Senior Living has begun construction at the former rugby league ground at Carlaw Park in Parnell, Auckland, where 300-400 people will live once the $120 million project is complete.
Vision founder Peter Bourke said demand remained strong in the retirement market despite the housing downturn.
“[Parnell] is not on the market and it’s not been advertised but I know we’ve got more than 100 registered interests so far. It’s going to be a cracker.”
He said where the housing market was having an effect was in the time it took for retirement village buyers to sell their own homes “but we know that’s happening across the board”.
After a share issue in March, majority ownership of Vision shifted to a Goldman Sachs private equity fund and Bourke said the stronger equity base meant projects no longer had to be financed through individual partnerships and leveraged deals.
“When Goldman came along and started putting money into the parent company our modus operandi changed - we had the capital to make investments ourselves and not rely on deals,” Bourke said. “It’s all part of growing up.”
The company now owns 100 per cent of its developments in Waitakere, Manukau, Hamilton and Papamoa.
A further development is under way in the Bay of Islands and plans are afoot for one at a former Feltex site at Ilam in Christchurch.