Rainforest Edge Estate by Kenfrost Homes, nestled on the slopes of Mt Sheridan, stands proud coming in as a Finalist in the 2021 UDIA Awards for Excellence in the category of Regional Project of the Year! The site, only half way through its completion, presents challenging terrain calling for exceptional engineering on the stormwater works, roads, and retaining walls, some of which are more than 3m high, to still enable flat blocks ready for building.

Located around 9 kms from the Cairns CBD on elevated land that was a former cane field, Rainforest Edge is a small and unique remnant site between established suburbs of Cairns. Framed by 2 waterways and surrounded by Wet Tropics Rainforest, the 136 homes located at Rainforest Edge will always have a uniqueness to them. To further optimise the subdivision layout, a strategically located selection of lots were especially designed for split level 2 storey homes. These homes have undercroft garages and downstairs entries and a relatively normal 3 or 4 bedroom home upstairs that retains a normal flat level back yard. This has created a high value street scape at the same time, making these 2 storey homes far more family friendly and taking advantage of slope that may otherwise be seen as a liability.

With the nature of the site and being in a tropical environment has meant that delivery of the project has been slow; at the end of each construction season, the site has been prepared and protected for the wet season with hydro-mulching, waterbars, mulch bunds, erosion fencing and rock chutes for the use of the stormwater system to convey flows off site.

We are delighted that the UDIA judges visiting the site thought highly of the project to declare it a finalist in category even though it still has a long way to go, and the biggest challenge for the civil team still awaits as the steepest road construction in any of our Kenfrost Estates makes way for the most exclusive blocks at the highest elevation with sensational views from the CBD all the way down to Walsh’s Pyramid.