Places Archives - People Purpose Place

Now Home to Five

Where We Are Now

Ginn Road is home.

As of early 2026, five residents have moved in and are settling into life together at Ginn Road, Malanda. It’s a quiet milestone – one that represents years of planning, community conversation, and genuine belief that housing can work differently.

Out of respect for dignity and privacy, we won’t be sharing personal details about the people who live here, and we ask supporters and neighbours to honour that boundary. What we can say is this: the people who now call Ginn Road home are real, contributing members of our community. They belong here. And as neighbours, supporters and locals, we all share responsibility for creating a place where people can live with stability, respect and connection.
So far, the model is working — not just structurally, but socially. What’s growing here is more than housing; it’s trust, participation, and a renewed sense of purpose.

We’re proud. We’re also learning. And we’re grateful to everyone who helped get us here – applicants who trusted the process, workshop participants who asked the hard questions, investors who backed an unproven idea, and supporters who simply cheered us on.

Ginn Road – Project Summary

PeoplePurposePlace is excited to share our first pilot project: a purpose-built collaborative living home, located at Ginn Road, in the beautiful town of Malanda, Queensland. This innovative housing solution demonstrates how thoughtful design can create affordable, sustainable communities while addressing the ongoing housing crisis.

The Vision

Located on 3.58 acres in a rural residential setting, the Ginn Road property represents more than just housing – it’s a model for collaborative living that balances individual privacy with community connection. The project demonstrates how we can design homes tailored for multiple residents, while ensuring equal access to amenities and preserving the natural environment.

Sustainable Design Features

The home achieves an impressive 8.5-star energy rating through:

Solar – details still to be decided
Lightweight framed construction using James Hardie cladding products
Breezeway elements connecting indoor and outdoor spaces
Extended overhangs and cathedral ceilings for natural cooling
22,000-litre rainwater tank topped up by bore water from solar system
Wildlife corridor (to allow tree roo travel under cover from N. Johnstone R. to Cleminson Creek)

Living Arrangements

The 319.4m² home features five self-contained bedroom suites, each designed with equality in mind. Similar sizes and features ensure that no resident has an advantage over another. The layout includes:

Five bedrooms with en-suites and open shelving
Shared kitchen with dual ovens for accessibility
Flexible breezeway spaces for community interaction
Multiple outdoor areas, including verandahs and patios
Laundry area and ample storage

The Journey Continues

Moving in was the beginning, not the end.

One of the things that makes Ginn Road different from a standard share house is the ongoing support woven into the fabric of the project. Residents continue to participate in regular collaborative learning sessions – the same kind of workshops that helped shape the group before move-in, now evolving to meet the real-life questions that come up when people actually share a home.

These sessions aren’t a condition to be endured. They’re a genuine part of what it means to live collaboratively – building shared agreements, navigating differences with care, and creating a community that works for everyone in it. PeoplePurposePlace facilitates this process, and we remain actively involved in supporting the household as it finds its rhythm.

What We’re Learning

Ginn Road is a pilot project, and we’re treating it like one – which means paying close attention to what’s working, what’s harder than expected, and what we’d do differently next time.

We’re documenting insights as we go. Some of what we’re learning relates to design – how the spaces actually get used versus how we imagined they would. Some of it relates to process – what the workshops covered well, and where residents needed more support. And some of it is harder to quantify: what it feels like to live in a home that was built with you in mind.

In time, we intend to share these learnings openly, so that other communities, investors, and housing practitioners can build on what we’ve started here. If you’re working on something similar and want to connect, we’d love to hear from you.

Community-Focused Amenities

Residents benefit from carefully planned shared spaces and community support:

Facilitated collaborative group training
Ongoing group support and mediation
Agreed calendar events and shared meals
Clearly defined individual spaces with external access
Chill-out areas
Residents will be encouraged and enabled to join in on neighbourhood and/or broader community activities

Inspired by Ginn Road?

If you’re curious about starting a collaborative living project in your own community – or you’re an investor, developer, or local council looking to explore what’s possible – we’d love to talk.

Ginn Road didn’t happen overnight. It took the right people, the right process, and a lot of patience. We’ve learned how to do this, and we’re ready to help others do the same.

Get in touch · Learn how we help · Explore our other projects

Affordable Housing Solution

The project demonstrates financial viability through:

Below market rent, making housing affordable for pensioners and key workers
Rent kept below the income threshold for housing affordability
Multiple ownership and investment models available
Socially-minded investment opportunities available

Training and Support

Central to the project’s success is our comprehensive support system:

Learning Sessions – the “toolbox” teaching essential collaboration skills
Clear agreements and ongoing mediation support
Regular community events and shared activities
Adaptable systems that evolve with changing circumstances

The Bigger Picture

The Ginn Road project addresses critical housing challenges by:

Providing affordable accommodation for essential workers and elders
Creating sustainable communities that support local economies
Demonstrating viable alternatives to traditional housing models
Fostering long-term commitment to regional towns and cities

Located in the heart of the Ngadjon-Jii First Nations territory, the project respects both cultural heritage and environmental values while creating a blueprint for collaborative living that can be replicated across Australia.

This pilot project demonstrates that, with thoughtful design, community support, and innovative financing models, we can develop housing solutions that benefit individuals, investors, and communities alike.

View Case Study here

Progress & status:

Construction began in earnest in early 2024, with working drawings and engineering finalised and the slab laid in March of that year. What followed was a period of steady building, punctuated by the delays that are an honest part of any construction project in regional Queensland. The building was completed in early 2026, and residents moved in progressively from late January to early February 2026.

The project took longer than hoped and exactly as long as it needed to. We documented the journey as it unfolded — including the setbacks — and you can read the full story in the History and Background section below.