Overlooking the white sands of the Gold Coast’s Palm Beach sits Soleil, a carefully crafted apartment embodying the best in coastal living. Half of two congruent four-bedroom villas, the apartment is the latest offering from Mactech Constructions – a boutique building firm that has made ambitious, high-end builds something of a signature. And Soleil is no exception. It boasts a striking concrete facade, its undulating curves visible from all angles – inspired by and mirroring the ocean below.

The apartment’s real showstopper is the glass-edged cantilevered pool, floating four storeys above the street to take in the expansive ocean vista. A stunning feat of design and engineering, the pool’s circular glass bottom is echoed in the glazed floor sections on the lower balconies, allowing the pool to be visible from ground level. ‘I wanted people to see it and go “holy crap!”,’ jokes Nick McDonald, director of Mactech Constructions. Mission accomplished.

The four-bedroom apartment is Nick’s family home, which means his vision wasn’t constrained by clients’ budgets or tastes. He and his wife, who oversaw the interior design, had a few lifestyle-oriented must-haves, such as sufficient parking, a cellar, pool and home gym. But mostly, it was about exercising their creativity and pushing the limits.

‘We’d done a building on the same street which won the HIA Australian Townhouse/Villa of the Year two years ago,’ Nick explains. ‘So we couldn’t go backwards, right? You have to do something better than what you did before.’

The project was designed by Jayson Pate Designs, with whom Nick has a strong collaborative relationship. ‘We bounce everything off each other,’ he says. ‘It works really well.’ Soleil is a testament to this synergy between designer and builder, an inspirational union of creative ideas and technical expertise.

The HIA judges described it as an ‘unbelievable build’ and were impressed by the apartment’s internal flow and modern coastal aesthetic. The soft, curved forms carry through from the exteriors, finished in a selection of tactile, organic finishes such as raw stone, marble, custom Rockcote render, and timber.

Nick is immensely proud of Soleil, describing it as ‘a reflection of our company, of what we can do’, which is why he put it up for this year’s HIA Awards. And while he was ‘super surprised’ to win, it was the icing on the cake for an incredibly rewarding build.

‘Obviously, it wouldn’t be what it is without our team,’ he adds. ‘They all took ownership and came together to deliver this amazing result.’ mactechconstructions

Materials:

• Timber battens: New Tech Wood from JH Williams
• Render: Rockcote
• Pool: Custom glass windows; laminated glass floor panels
• Balcony tiles: Moroccan Crazy Pave from Stone Style
• Drystack stone wall cladding from Stone Style
• Carpet: Samurai 100% wool from Cavalier Bremworth
• Home automation: CBUS/Savant 
• Bathroom tiles: Moroccan Crazy Pave from Stone Style

First published on 14 July 2025.