The second information meeting for an innovative Ballarat housing proposal has been set for the end of June.
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Nightingale, a development project hoping to build its first regional offering in Ballarat, hosted its first session in late May, with about 100 people attending.
The Nightingale model, which brings potential buyers in through a ballot process for "stripped-back" apartments close to amenities, has produced two complexes in Melbourne already, with several more planned.
The proposed Ballarat development would add to new higher-density housing stock being planned across the town, which could make housing more accessible.
Nightingale's project lead and business development manager Jen Kulas was at the first Ballarat meeting - you can listen to the full recording here.
"One question was size of demand, that'll help inform the response for the mix we'll have on offer," she said.
"What's interesting, the apartment size most of interest is two bedrooms - similar to what we'd expect from a Melbourne market."
As well as Nightingale's green sustainability credentials and focus on no-frills living - previous projects have included shared laundries, for example - Ms Kulas said many of the people at the meeting were Ballarat residents who wanted to stay there.
"It's not our intention to house Melburnians moving to Ballarat, it's to provide an alternative to ageing residential housing stock built in the '60, '70s, and '80s," she said.
Professor Naomi Stead, head of architecture at Monash University, has previously analysed the Nightingale approach.
She said the proposal would be useful for regional cities like Ballarat, even though projects in the city are built close to public transport connections.
"(It's useful) especially if the developments are located centrally, where people can still walk or cycle to work, and be in close proximity to services and urban amenity," she said.
"It's about people moving away from dependence on cars, and hence the need for very expensive car parking within the apartment block - but this doesn't mean you have to abandon cars altogether, and the Nightingale model has been very clear that car share models, as well as active transport, are part of the solution - alongside trains and trams and buses."
With the rental vacancy down to 0.8 per cent in Ballarat, any word on new developments is welcomed, and the project's website notes "Nightingale Housing encourages all developments to allocate 20 per cent through a community housing provider".
However, Professor Stead cautioned that while Nightingale projects are more affordable, that would not mean they're overly accessible for people on lower incomes.
"Nevertheless, increasing the stock of high quality housing, which is sustainable, and brings people into the centre to promote a vibrant urban culture, is always going to be a good thing," she said.
That's part of the appeal for local governments, Ms Kulas said.
"I know specifically in Ballarat, there's a real express interest from council to encourage this active centre, to get people into the middle of Ballarat so they're not commuting," she said.
"We fit in really conveniently with their aims for a walkable city, a more sustainable and dense city."
While it's still quite early in the process, the second public information session is set for June 26 at Trades Hall, with another in July.
Ms Kulas said Nightingale is working towards submitting a town planning application for a Davey Street site, and project architects will attend the next meeting.
"The location we've been looking at is a big reason why we decided to pounce on the opportunity, it's great for connectivity, and with GovHub ... it'll be an interesting evolution for that part of Ballarat," she said.
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