News

Highrise in wrong spot

A PROPOSAL which could see 1,200 residential apartments squeezed into a site between the rail line and the M4 at Holroyd, has been criticised by Cumberland Mayor Steve Christou.

Until early 2018, WesTrac leased the site at 1 Crescent Street which is zoned for B5 Business Development with heights of 15 metres or less than four storeys.
However in 2016, the site’s owners asked for a determination by the Regional Planning Panel on a planning proposal for a mixed-use development on the site.
In July this year, the proposal, which includes buildings up to 96 metres, or 28 storeys, got a green light from the Sydney Central City Planning Panel and a Gateway Determination was issued, progressing it to the next stage of the rezoning process.
However Cr Christou warned that the planning proposal was going to create high density development in the wrong location and is “not smart planning”.
“It’s the sort of development you may consider if it was next to a train station or major transport hub, but it’s slated for a site that was industrial and is sitting next to a major motorway,” he said.
“We are at a loss to understand why the State Government would support the planning proposal to rezone this site and open the door to high density residential development in this area.”
Cr Christou said the development was also at odds with the plan to regenerate the Parramatta Road Corridor.
“The residents of Holroyd now need to prepare themselves for a massive development going up in the neighbourhood and their existing infrastructure will need to service a much larger population,” he said.
Further community consultation is required before the rezoning is finalised by the State Government, and should it proceed, development applications would then need to be lodged.