Even after all the publicity surrounding Wollongong Council, the State Labor party and Frank Sartor, life seems to have returned to normal.
The GPT group seems very confident that their development proposals will be accepted by Planning Minister Frank Sartor.
The revitalisation of western Crown St is long overdue but it is curious that GPT is so upbeat about getting a 10 and 18-storey building past the relevant by-laws.
Of course GPT was very vocal about Belmorgan’s plans to redevelop the Dwyers site and breaking the 8-storey height restriction.
Will Belmorgan be returning the favour and will we have two vacant construction sites for the next decade?
What this does bring to light is the dog’s breakfast of height restrictions in and around the CBD.
Wollongong City Centre Local Environmental Plan (LEP) 2007 (click to enlarge)
From: http://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/wollongong/plans/files/LEP_2.pdf
The intention of the plan for the city centre has to keep the heights of buildings around the beaches to a minimum and gradually increase them as you move further away from the coast. This lets light in to the parks and allows views of the beach from the escarpment.
But in certain sections of the plan there seems to be a different vision for the city. Including the proposed site of the new GPT development.
On May 29, 2006 council was discussing the sale of 600sqm of Richardson St and of the stratum above and below Keira St to the GPT group. In December 2006 council unveiled the new options for the Crown St Mall. In February 2007 the new LEP with the building height restrictions came out.
I am sure that this was a grand vision by the then council’s financial officers to bring the council out of debt, encouraging the planning department to have favourable height restrictions around Richardson Street so a developer would want to purchase 600sqm of public road for a major development.
So how much does 600sqm of public road go for? $1,500,000 (exc. GST) or $2,500 per sqm.
If only the current council administrators had the same vision of the previous council. Instead of cutting services and introducing parking meters for public parking spaces, they could just sell Burrelli St and write off the whole debt at the next council meeting.
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