The long-awaited Ipswich Winerack development is on track for completion at the end of the year, say the developers as the prepare to open their first show apartment.
It is an important milestone for the Waterfront site, meaning potential buyers will finally get to see what the complex can offer.
The towering skeleton in Ipswich became a symbol of the 2008 financial crisis and the recession that followed after building work halted overnight.
As time went on and work failed to restart there were fears it would have to be demolished.
But after years of inactivity, the £26m development was revived and for the past year has been a hive of industry.
The first of four apartment blocks on site is now complete and the 11 flats have been handed over to developers Ipswich Wharf Developments, and the rest are moving forward rapidly.
Designer Julia Scowsill is now hard at work completing the interior design and furnishing in the show apartment ready for the first viewings, which start on May 2.
The three-bedroom penthouse apartment is in Q3 which is the stand-alone, four-floor block at the front of the site, alongside the quayside.
Developer John Howard, of Ipswich Wharf Developments, said: “Everyone wants to see the Winerack apartments finished.
“I am delighted with the progress, by RG Carter and to get Q3 completed and handed over.”
He added: “We have already had a lot of interest, from ex-pats from as far as America, Asia and Europe, who might be looking to buy a second home back in the UK, to down-sizers and from first-time buyers too.
“Help to Buy is available on the scheme on Q2 and Q4. It is a very strong and diverse market.
The former Regatta Quay development, now the Winerack, includes a total of 150 apartments across the four buildings, with the tallest building having 17 floors.
Mr Howard said building was on track for completion in December.
Inside the building specialist engineers from Germany, working for manufacturer Wohr, are installing a multi-storey car stacker system.
The automatic car parking and stacker system will create 264 car parking bays, with one allocated to each of the 150 apartments.
The car stacker system is scheduled for completion in September 2019, ready for residents moving into the new homes.
It is similar to a system currently in use in Mumbai, India.
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