Billbergia Lodges Four-Tower Residential Precinct Plan

Sydney developer Billbergia has lodged plans for a four-tower residential precinct in Arncliffe near Sydney Airport.

Billbergia, well known for its apartment projects in Wentworth Point in Sydney's west, has now turned its attention to a state significant project, dubbed Eden Street Arncliffe, planned for a 1.3ha site owned by the NSW Land and Housing Corporation.

The 60,000sq m development will comprise four towers, one of 21 storeys, two at 20 storeys and one of 17 storeys that will house the social housing elements of the project.

Together they will offer 714 apartments, including 180 social housing apartments which will be owned, operated, and managed by Evolve Housing, one of Australia’s largest community housing providers.

It is slated for an island site, bounded by Eden Street, Forest Road and Princess Highway, which currently has 14 ageing, low-rise social housing buildings on it.

Planning for the site has been guided and fast-tracked by the Bayside West Precinct 2036 Plan, which identified the opportunity to redevelop the existing 142 social housing units on the site.

To facilitate the site’s redevelopment, a state environmental planning policy amendment was adopted in October, 2018 to include the site as a state significant development site.

The amalgamated site, made up of 13 allotments, is currently zoned B4 mixed use under the Rockdale LEP 2011 allowing for buildings of up to 70 metres high.

Unlike other state significant developments, an architectural design competition will not be held, instead, plans by Group GSA are being fast-tracked to the state design review panel.

It will also feature 3100sq m of retail gross floor area, a 240sq m childcare centre, 3700sq m of communal open space and 813 spaces of lower ground and basement car parking.

The developer is also planning 4900sq m of publicly accessible open space including a 4000sq m public park and an 870sq m public plaza, and through site link connecting Eden Street and the Princes Highway.

The development will be of equal scale to Deicorp’s recently completed, 10-storey, four-building apartment precinct next to Billbergia’s site at 118 Princes Highway.

Over the last 12 months the NSW government has fast-tracked a number of project applications in a bid to boost the Covid-19-hit economy and has laid out plans to transfer some application processes online.

It also plans to spend upwards of $80 million to hire more staff and shorten planning assessment times over the next three years.

The funding will aim to assist the state's planning system and cut up to 190 days, or 33 per cent, off the average time taken for rezoning decisions and 20 days, or 17 per cent, from the time taken to decide on state significant developments.

Billbergia, led by managing director John Kinsella AM, is currently well into construction on a 50-level commercial development at 88 Walker Street in North Sydney.

The tower, earmarked for completion in third quarter of 2022, will be North Sydney’s tallest office tower comprising 23 levels of A-grade commercial office space above a 252-suite 4-star hotel to be operated by Citadines.