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GUEST OBSERVER
The package of reforms passed by the NSW Parliament are a step forward for the planning system in NSW but the detail resolution of the reforms could lead to some elements slowing planning applications down.
The big picture reforms that have gone through the NSW Parliament sound like progressive moves to lift strategic planning and get communities on board with planning decisions, but the detail could create more red tape rather that a more efficient system.
A focus on strategic planning is good but to require yet another planning document in the form of a 'local strategic planning statement’ could add significant time and could lead to different interpretations with Local Environmental Plans. By adding another layer we are concerned that this may make planning slower and more complicated.
The requirement that ‘Community Participation Plans’ are produced by each council sounds reasonable but the Urban Taskforce is concerned that these plans could lead to further delays for individual projects or they could encourage greater negativity to development.
We are concerned that there seems to be little guidance to councils on just what a ‘Community Participation Plan’ should include. There must be an acceptance of State Government housing targets, State Government infrastructure investment, Federal Government Immigration policies and the impact of these areas on the need to accommodate growth. There must also be a requirement that participation involves all of the community not just individual action groups and that participation is handled in a timely manner.
The regulations that support the new legislation must control all of these issues.
The inclusion of design quality as an objective in the act is a good move particularly as greater densities are likely and communities will be more supportive of well-designed environments. The roll of the NSW Government Architect in giving guidance on design quality is a good use of this position that has been an input to the built environment in NSW over 200 years.
The rationalisation of Development Control Plans (DCPs) into a standard format is a positive move that should be replicated with Community Participation Plans and Local Strategic Planning Statements. To allow each council to develop very different formats and requirements will only lead to a slower and more complicated planning system. The Urban Taskforce is seeing a lack of discipline in policy terms with housing affordability with multiple government agencies and multiple councils all having very different policies that are leading to a well-meaning but ultimately unsustainable planning system.
The reforms in the area of building certification will give greater community confidence in this process but we are concerned that certifiers are under so much scrutiny and must certify every step in the planning and building process that the practitioners in this area are finding the future of certifiers is limited.
The NSW Government must support this industry rather than continually add so many conditions that the industry is marginalised.
Another recent reform to the planning system in NSW has been the proposal to amend the definition of ‘bulky goods premises’ to make this definition less restrictive. This is a simple amendment which reflects the changing nature of retail in Australia. This kind of adaptiveness and flexibility should be adopted to other areas of the planning system
The Urban Taskforce supports reforms of the NSW planning system that simplify the process as this will reduce the cost of housing. Our concern is that a number of the recent reforms, while being popular with communities worried about future growth, will add more layers and red tape to the planning system which will end up lifting the cost of housing in NSW. We are keen to work with the NSW Government in ensuring that the detail of the planning reforms included in regulations do not turn well-meaning policies into excessive red tape. 
Chris Johnson is the Urban Taskforce CEO.
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NSW planning reforms could slow applications: Chris Johnson

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The release of the draft Greater Sydney Region Plan along with the related draft Future Transport Strategy signals a major shift in the character of the city as it becomes more urban.
It is good that the NSW Government has released an integrated regional plan for Sydney as well as a transport and infrastructure plan.
The 20 year plans along with the 40 year visions signal big changes for Sydney and it will be important that political parties and community groups embrace these changes as they underpin the economic and cultural framework for Sydney as a global city.
The aspirations from the plan are to lift Sydney from being a top 20 global city up to a top 10 global city and this will deliver quality jobs and economic prosperity. To reach this level, however, means that Sydney must mature from being an essentially suburban city to now balancing this with a new urban, cosmopolitan density linked to metro rail public transport. The reality is that the top world’s global cities have much greater densities than Sydney currently has.
It is important that the NSW Opposition and community groups that are currently expressing concern that Sydney is changing get behind the need to manage growth for future generations. The Greater Sydney Region Plan and the Future Transport Strategy can underpin a strong future for Sydney.
By focussing the new urban, apartment form of the city around railway stations will mean that most of Sydney will remain as low rise suburban housing. To change this suburban model with town houses would spread the negative concerns about change across many suburbs.
The regional plan has sensible statements about the provision of affordable housing through increased residential floor space that ensure the viability of housing projects. The Urban Taskforce is concerned that individual councils across metropolitan Sydney, however, believe that all developers should contribute a percentage of their apartments as affordable homes with no uplift. All this will do is slow down housing supply and therefore increase the cost of new housing.
The Future Transport Strategy included an analysis of other global cities that demonstrated that Sydney’s current density of 410 people per square kilometre is well below Tokyo (6,200), London (5,800), Paris (6,000), Singapore (7,000) Berlin (3,900) or New York (11,000). Car based cities like Los Angeles are at 1,050 people per square kilometre which is double that of Sydney’s current density.
The plans for heavy rail, metro rail, and intermediate transport (busses, ferry, light rail) demonstrate a real commitment to how the next phase of a denser Sydney will operate. It will be important to turn these plans and visions into real projects in future years.
A key statistic in the data presented in the regional plan is how each of the three identified cities for Sydney will accommodate growth in housing over the next 20 years (page 9). The East City will lead the way with 43.4% of the growth followed by the West city at 29.2% and the Central City at 27.4%.
Unfortunately the NSW Opposition and community groups are building up campaigns against development close to the Eastern City including attacks on projects in Marrickville, the Sydenham to Bankstown corridor and along Anzac Parade. Clearly these are areas where the tension of a move from suburban houses to apartments is creating local concerns. It will be important that these communities understand that the housing is for their own children and grand-children.
The Greater Sydney Region Plan makes a strong statement in relation to the Eastern Harbour City about 'protecting all industrial land from conversion to residential development, including conversion to mixed- use zonings'. This will make it difficult to achieve the housing growth targets for the East City.
To communicate the quality of a more urban environment the planning and transport documents use language that implies better quality will come. Terms like ‘walkable great places’, ‘successful places’ and ‘better placed’ are used to encourage readers to see the positives of urban density. It will be important as the plans are rolled out to give communities confidence that a new more urban quality environment can be the product of Sydney’s growth.
The Urban Taskforce is keen to work with the Greater Sydney Commission and the NSW Government in ensuring that the well-meaning objectives in the Greater Sydney Region Plan and the Future Transport Strategy translate into results on the ground. Sydney still has a housing supply problem with at least 725,000 new homes required over a 20 year period. Even in boom times it has been difficult to reach the yearly average of 36,250 new homes.
Chris Johnson is chief executive officer of property development industry group Urban Taskforce and can be contacted <a href="https://www.urbantaskforce.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=97&amp;Itemid=126#.Vdaart55dFI" target="_blank">here</a>. 
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Plan for Sydney must champion a more urban and global city

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GUEST OBSERVER
The planning system in New South Wales must support apartments that are affordable.
Our research into the cost of apartments in Sydney has found that planning rules make them more expensive than in other Australian cities.
We have outlined the results of our research in a publication titled ‘Affordable Apartments’ which looks at global trends to help reduce the cost of urban housing.
In New York there has been a move towards ‘Micro Apartments’ that can be as small as 30 square metres as long as they are located close to jobs and amenities. Sydney can learn from the New York initiatives as part of a focus on housing affordability.
One area where initiatives are being undertaken in NSW is the move towards New Generation Boarding Houses.
A number of small studio apartments of around 25 square metres are able to share common facilities in buildings that are only built to rent.
These smaller units are able to bypass many of the NSW planning rules on solar access and minimum sizes under the Affordable Rental Housing State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP) 2009.
The NSW Government should encourage a greater use of building like McCarthy Maisonettes as outlined in our publication.
The Urban Taskforce research also compared the NSW Apartment Design Guide requirements with the Victorian equivalent Better Apartment Design Standards document and found that $150,000 could be saved from the purchase price of a NSW two bed apartment if the Victorian rules were applied.
The Urban Taskforce believes the NSW Government needs to seriously look at its well-meaning planning rules that apply to apartment design in the interest of affordability.
A special category should be established for Affordable Apartments in urban locations where there are many amenities including public transport.
Another category should be established for high rise city locations where it is difficult to achieve the winter sun access to 70 percent of apartments required by the Apartment Design Guide.”
The NSW Apartment Design Guide has 180 pages packed with micro details while the Victorian Better Apartment Standards which was produced after an analysis of the NSW version has only 40 pages with much more flexibility.
The Victorian document took affordability into account in its approach to setting planning rules for apartments.
The development industry in NSW is keen to help consumers with the delivery of more affordable apartments but this will need a number of planning standards to be amended.
The Urban Ideas publication on “Affordable Apartments” can be accessed <a href="https://www.urbantaskforce.com.au/urbanideas/august2017/?page=1" target="_blank">here</a>.
CHRIS JOHNSON is chief executive officer of property development industry group Urban Taskforce and can be contacted <a href="https://www.urbantaskforce.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=97&amp;Itemid=126#.Vdaart55dFI" target="_blank">here</a>.
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Planning support needed for affordable apartments: Chris Johnson

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GUEST OBSERVER
The Urban Taskforce has established ‘Council Watch’ that will transparently measure how critical councils are performing in relation to housing supply and the effective processing of planning applications.
Increasingly it is councils that are the regulators of the planning system that determine how long it takes to get approvals for major housing projects.
With the NSW Government moving away from amalgamating councils that would have created more efficient structures we believe we will need to monitor the performance of key metropolitan Councils in Sydney. The Urban Taskforce has therefore set up ‘Council Watch’ to actively monitor the most critical councils across Sydney.
We are doing this to protect consumers of new housing from excessive purchase prices of new homes that could be inflated by increased council levies and extended planning processes that increase holding costs that get passed on to the end purchaser.
High on our list will be council policies that may impact on the supply of new housing which the NSW Government says is a priority. With the state government lifting the cap on infrastructure levies, we believe bullish councils are likely to add up to $50,000 to the cost of a home. The growing trend to add levies to new housing to contribute a percentage as affordable homes back to the council will also increase the cost of new housing.
We have polled our members to identify the top 10 councils that have significant potential for large numbers of new homes and where planning policies will be critical to ensuring maximum numbers of new homes are approved and built.
The top 10 councils are:
1 Blacktown 
2 Camden 
3 Canterbury-Bankstown
4 The Hills
 5 Liverpool 
6 North Sydney
 7 Parramatta 
8 Penrith 
9 Ryde
 10 City of Sydney
The Urban Taskforce believes that transparency of decision making is very important and that this must include the logic behind actual policy decisions. Willoughby City Council, for instance developed a new city centre planning policy based on economic advice by private consultants.
Clearly the economic advice underpins all the planning decisions but despite submitting a Government Information Public Access (GIPA) request council has refused to make the economic reasoning for policies that are now stopping housing supply public.
We are concerned that many councils seem to base policies on economic reports but then refuse to make these reports public. Council Watch will be high-lighting where we believe these reports should be public.
A second group of councils that are important to watch are:
1 Bayside 
2 Campbelltown
 3 Cumberland
 4 Fairfield
 5 Northern Beaches
6 Willoughby 
7 Wollondilly
A third group that may drop out of the Council Watch process over time but will be included initially are:
1 Georges River
2 Inner West
 3 Ku-ring-gai 4 Lane Cove
5 Randwick
6 Woollahra
7 Hornsby 
8 Waverley
9 Sutherland
10 Burwood 
Chris Johnson is chief executive officer of property development industry group Urban Taskforce and can be contacted <a href="https://www.urbantaskforce.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=97&amp;Itemid=126#.Vdaart55dFI" target="_blank">here</a>.
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Urban Taskforce establishes ‘Council Watch’ to help purchasers of new homes

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The recent report by the Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) highlights the importance of improving planning systems and in providing infrastructure. 
The CEDA report titled Housing Australia is a welcome contribution to the growing debate on housing affordability in Australia. 
There are many aspects in the recommendations and contained in the chapters by experts that the Urban Taskforce supports. The focus on the need to relax planning restrictions imposed by local councils is an important national message.
Many councils are very focused on local issues and on protecting the concerns of their existing residents which creates a less than positive attitude to change particularly if it entails increased density and height. 
This leads to an adversarial situation with those who propose change who are generally developers. The consequence of this adversarial relationship is long delays, the imposition of excessive restrictions and frequent requests for more detailed information. 
The end product of this tension is to add significant extra cost to housing projects that inevitably increase the price of a home to the purchaser.
The CEDA report has a strong focus on the provision of transport infrastructure and this is where governments at all levels need to contribute. In NSW there is a very strong transport infrastructure commitment by the state government, particularly for metro rail, which underpins where new housing is to be located. 
As stressed in the CEDA report this will entail increased housing densities and governments at all levels need to champion this approach.
The report advocates encouraging a long term rental market like other global cities and a number of Urban Taskforce members are actively pursuing this new asset class.” 
The Urban Taskforce is concerned at suggested changes to capital gains tax as this would slow down the investment market which would reduce housing supply. 
Another issued raised by the report is the need to encourage downsizing of older people from larger houses into more appropriately sized dwellings. 
Currently there are taxation issues that discourage this desirable outcome.
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A broad based land tax is advocated in place of transactional taxes like stamp duty and the Urban Taskforce has championed this for some time. There does seem to be a growing number of key organisations advocating this approach and with leadership across the three levels of government this may be getting closer to realisation.
The Urban Taskforce supports most of the recommendations from the CEDA report on Housing Australia and appreciates the excellent input by the individual authors.
Chris Johnson is chief executive officer of property development industry group Urban Taskforce and can be contacted <a href="https://www.urbantaskforce.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=97&amp;Itemid=126#.Vdaart55dFI" target="_blank">here</a>.
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CEDA report on housing Australia highlights importance of planning and infrastructure: Chris Johnson

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GUEST OBSERVER
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The proposal by The Hills Shire Council to provide transitional housing through bonus floor space has appropriate incentives to encourage developers.
The Mayor of the Hills Shire Council, Clr Yvonne Keane, has championed an approach to transitional housing that has received the full support of her Council.
Transitional housing is to assist victims of domestic violence, by providing access to a home while they are rebuilding their lives. 
The Council proposal is to encourage developers to provide a single apartment for a 10 year period by allowing two extra apartments above the current planning limits.
This approach is similar to the Urban Taskforce proposal to providing affordable housing for a ten year period through an uplift in floor space and height. 
The development industry can contribute subsidised housing over a ten year period if the incentives for extra floor space are sufficient to make this economically viable.
A number of Urban Taskforce members who are developing apartment projects in The Hills Shire Council area including Sekisui, Mirvac, Aqualand, Dyldam and PAYCE have expressed their support for the transitional housing proposal. Major developers like PAYCE have run the numbers over the proposal and believe it is a viable approach to help provide the subsidised housing that Council is encouraging.
Chris Johnson is chief executive officer of property development industry group Urban Taskforce and can be contacted <a href="https://www.urbantaskforce.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=97&amp;Itemid=126#.Vdaart55dFI" target="_blank">here</a>.
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Urban Taskforce gives transitional housing proposal by Hills Shire Council green light

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GUEST OBSERVER
The announcement by the NSW Government of a new integrated design policy must balance well-meaning aspirations towards high quality with the impact on affordability.
The NSW Government’s ‘Better Placed - Integrated design policy’ is an important commitment to making sure clever thinking is involved in how the built environment is designed and steered by government at state and local levels.
As a general policy these aspirations are important but in the hands of tick the box council planners the creativity of quality architects could be overly regulated.
The development industry is keen to produce buildings of design quality but we believe this should involve a variety of approaches to design that reflect the diversity of the NSW community.
The state's design policy and its implementation process must ensure that it does not become focused on a narrow style guide but encourages a variety of design approaches.
Affordability must be a key consideration in a design process but the final Better Placed document has removed the 'cost effective' component that was included in the draft version under principle six.
Good design must focus on cost effectiveness particularly at a time when Sydney's housing is unaffordable for many younger people.
The Better Placed policy stresses the importance of Design Review Panels particularly for apartment projects but this needs to be balanced with the government's recent announcement about mandatory Independent Hearing and Assessment Panels (IHAPs) for all projects between $5 million and $30 million in value. It may be better to ensure that the IHAPs have design skills involved rather than have two panels assessing each project.
The Urban Taskforce is concerned that the NSW Government will be producing ‘detailed design guides, manuals and case studies’ by the end of 2018 which are likely to add further detailed planning assessment criteria that the development industry and its architect consultants will need to comply with.
We all want to produce quality projects that fit the economic parameters that ensure consumers can access new housing and work places but New South Wales needs to get the balance right between quality and affordability.
Chris Johnson is chief executive officer of property development industry group Urban Taskforce and can be contacted <a href="https://www.urbantaskforce.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=97&amp;Itemid=126#.Vdaart55dFI">here</a>.
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State design policy must balance quality with affordability: Chris Johnson

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GUEST OBSERVER
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A Planning Circular recently issued by the NSW Government outlining changes to the cap on local infrastructure contributions is likely to increase the cost of housing and exacerbate the housing affordability crisis. 
The Planning Circular issued on 27 July 2017 by the NSW Government outlines the removal of caps on local infrastructure levies in stages from January next year.
The current caps of $30,000 in greenfield areas and $20,000 in infill areas will increase by $5,000 each in three stages thereby adding $15,000 to the cost of each dwelling by 1 July 2019. After 1 July 2020 the caps will be removed entirely and local councils will be able to propose whatever charges they want.
Ironically these increases were initially announced by the State Government as part of the ‘Housing Affordability Strategy for NSW’ package released on 1 June 2017. Rather than reducing housing costs to help with affordability, the increases will simply be passed on to the purchasers of new homes.
Already some Urban Taskforce members have put a moratorium on acquiring new sites for development as the extra tax on their projects and uncertainty is making them financially unviable and risky. What is needed is more supply to help with affordability but the state government seems to be doing the opposite by adding even more levies to the cost of housing.
There are proposals to have IPART assess a council’s contribution plan and particularly to focus on Essential Infrastructure. Our concern is just how detailed the government’s instructions to IPART will be about what is essential and whether the proposed costs are reasonable. There will also be tests about reasonableness, nexus and apportionment to ensure an individual development only contributes fairly to infrastructure costs.
The February 2014 Practice Note on Local Development Contributions lists 7 criteria that will be used by IPART to evaluate contributions plans. Our concern is that the criteria do not include anything about the impact on housing affordability with the implication that IPART could approve $100,000 levies per lot if the essential works were reasonable.
With the government also encouraging high levies for affordable housing along with further levies for light rail projects it is hard to see how any new housing will not be far more expensive. The continual stacking of more levies onto new housing will either dramatically increase the cost of that housing or make new housing projects economically unviable so less housing is supplied.
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Former Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia, Glenn Stevens, who issued a report to the NSW Government on housing affordability on 1 June 2017 raised concerns about the costs of local infrastructure and raised the question: ‘is the infrastructure being unnecessarily “gold plated”?’ 
The NSW Government needs to be very careful in removing the current caps on infrastructure levies if it wants to help with housing affordability and housing supply. The current indications from the industry are that either housing costs will escalate or housing projects will become unviable and not proceed. Neither outcome will be good for those wanting to purchase a new home.
Chris Johnson is chief executive officer of property development industry group Urban Taskforce and can be contacted <a href="https://www.urbantaskforce.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=97&amp;Itemid=126#.Vdaart55dFI" target="_blank">here</a>.
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Uncapped tax on new housing supply will make housing unaffordable

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GUEST OBSERVER
The National Cities Performance Framework issued by Federal Cities Minister Angus Taylor is an excellent initiative to ensure more data is available to measure city performance but more measures are needed on urban apartment living.
The National Cities Performance Framework sets out many important measures that are essential to monitor the performance of Australia’s cities.
We are concerned however that the data seems skewed towards a detached house view of our cities with little measurement of the swing towards more urban apartment living.
Contextual indicator number 6, (p 20) for instance, measures the median detached house price with a description that this is ‘a typical house in a city’ and that this will help understand if ‘housing is affordable for residents’. 
The results from the 2016 census demonstrate that 28.1% of homes in Sydney are now apartments and housing approval data indicates that over 60% of approvals are for new apartments. This shift to apartment living is the biggest structural change happening in Australian cities and the National Cities Performance Framework must measure this trend.
The Housing Indicators also seem to focus on house prices rather than all homes including apartments and medium density dwellings.
The planning system is being evaluated through the value of building approvals per capita which is a useful measure but equally important is to measure the actual commencements of buildings. In Sydney only 58% of housing approvals, when measured over 4 years, proceed to commencement and become real projects.
The scale of the data listed in the performance framework is massive and this will clearly require significant resources to collate, validate, analyse and interpret.
The Urban Taskforce is particularly interested in interpreting future trends through the cities data and we are keen to work with Minister Taylor in ensuring that useful data comes from his important initiative.
CHRIS JOHNSON is chief executive officer of property development industry group Urban Taskforce and can be contacted <a href="https://www.urbantaskforce.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=97&amp;Itemid=126#.Vdaart55dFI" target="_blank">here</a>.
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National Cities Performance Framework must measure the trend to urban living

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GUEST OBSERVER
The revised Urban Renewal Corridor Strategy for Sydenham to Bankstown must keep urban densities that support the proposed Metro Rail.
The important Priority Precinct along the Sydenham to Bankstown rail corridor must support an urban density particularly around the new Metro Rail stations.
We are however concerned that the planning is taking a long time since the exhibition of the first Draft Strategy eighteen months ago.
The corridor is a good case study for how new Metro Rail infrastructure can stimulate new urban density but it seems the planning process could take three years from early planning to implementation.
Precincts like Campsie are having further investigation work undertaken by the Department of Planning and Environment and it is unclear if this could lead to a third round of exhibitions.
Former Governor of the Reserve Bank, Glenn Stevens, in his report to the NSW Government raised concerns about the time planning processes took relative to the ups and downs of markets.
The development industry gets a clear signal when a draft plan is exhibited that the government supports development in priority locations but actual planning approvals often have to wait for some years.
While there has been a reduction of around 2,000 new homes in some areas the overall proposed number of new dwellings at 35,400 is still a robust number. The Urban Taskforce urges the NSW Government to not make further reductions following the exhibition of this second draft.
The move away from medium density housing in Hurlstone Park and Dulwich Hill in favour of single dwellings due to community concerns about local character could be a signal that the government’s proposed ‘Missing Middle’ approach for medium density housing may not be preferred by existing communities of single homes.
The Draft Strategy seems to leave some areas unclear. The definition of Medium-high rise housing, which is the tallest, is not included. The Draft Strategy states that ‘specific building typologies for each individual Station Precinct’ are included in the revised strategy but is unclear where these typologies are. The Draft Strategy also states that detailed master plans are to be prepared for Canterbury, Campsie, Belmore and Lakemba Station Precincts so these will presumably occur some-time in the future.
The Urban Taskforce is keen to be involved in discussions with the NSW Government to ensure that the planning approach to Metro Rail related urban renewal is planned in a timely manner and with appropriate densities to accommodate future growth.
We are also keen to be involved in precinct planning around other stations on the Sydney Metro line at North Sydney and Crows Nest/ St Leonards. These are areas where there are excellent opportunities for quality urban development but the planning process for these precincts is unclear.
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Chris Johnson is chief executive officer of property development industry group Urban Taskforce and can be contacted <a href="https://www.urbantaskforce.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=97&amp;Itemid=126#.Vdaart55dFI" target="_blank">here</a>.
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Sydenham to Bankstown revitalisation corridor must keep urban density

Two years after completing one of the newest developments in North Sydney, developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/aqualand-australia">Aqualand</a> is turning its attention to the rapidly evolving St Leonards apartment market.

The developer, which completed AURA by Aqualand on North Sydney's Walker Street, has lodged plans for a 5,918 sqm site at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/33-37-herbert-street-st-leonards-nsw-2065">33-37 Herbert Street, St Leonards,</a> seeking approval for a pair of residential towers rising above a shared podium opposite Royal North Shore Hospital.

The proposal forms part of the broader transformation underway across the St Leonards-Crows Nest precinct, where former industrial and commercial sites are increasingly being redeveloped into high-density mixed-use projects tied to major transport infrastructure.

<img alt="Aqualand" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2cc428cf-fe70-4cac-9cd5-264ad53af62c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.51.56%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=otKSnHtbjAvAddOnovyXQMgcAwE6DMe1" />

According to the planning documents, the site sits “within the St Leonards–Crows Nest Strategic Centre, identified by the NSW Government as a key area for accommodating future jobs and housing across Sydney.”

The proposal has been designed by fjcstudio, formerly FJMT Studio, and is being progressed through the State Significant Development pathway due to its scale and affordable housing provision.

The scheme would comprise 413 apartments, including 46 affordable housing units, alongside retail and commercial uses fronting Herbert Street. The project would also include communal open space, landscaping, a swimming pool, gymnasium, children’s play areas and podium-level resident amenities.

Planning documents show the development would consist of a part-13, part-39 storey tower form positioned above a four-storey podium.

“The development comprises a unified podium that activates the street interface, and two setback towers to accommodate new housing supply while maintaining an appropriate human scale at ground level,” fjcstudio noted in its Design Report.

The northern and southern towers have been shaped to respond to the surrounding skyline while also limiting overshadowing impacts to nearby public open space, particularly Talus Reserve.

The design report said the differing tower heights were intended to “contribute to a varied skyline while responding to the surrounding built form context and solar access considerations.”

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The site sits directly opposite Royal North Shore Hospital and within walking distance of both St Leonards Station and the new Crows Nest Metro station.

While the site itself sits just outside the formal Crows Nest Transport Oriented Development boundary, the planning documents repeatedly reference its alignment with the broader TOD objectives reshaping the Lower North Shore.

“The site is located adjacent to St Leonards Station and in close proximity to Crows Nest Metro which is within the Crows Nest Transit Orientated Development Accelerated Precinct which has been identified by the NSW Government to support housing delivery,” the Design Verification Statement noted.

According to fjcstudio, the project has been designed to respond to the broader transition occurring across St Leonards, where increasing residential density is being concentrated around transport infrastructure and employment hubs.

“The broader precinct is undergoing significant change, with a mix of existing mid-rise buildings and newer high-density developments,” the report stated.

“Recent and approved projects indicate a consistent shift toward taller built form, typically organised as tower-and-podium typologies with more active ground levels.”

The proposal includes close to 6,000 sqm of retail and commercial space across the ground floor and podium levels, designed to create a more activated street edge along Herbert Street.

Aqualand’s plans would also introduce a landscaped podium shared between the two towers, with communal open space in the form of a podium rooftop designed to support resident interaction and improve urban greening outcomes. The scheme would also introduce pocket parks at the northern and southern ends of the site, including a landscaped area at the corner of Herbert and Ella streets designed to improve pedestrian amenity and soften the streetscape.

&nbsp;

The proposal is being progressed through the NSW Government’s Housing Delivery Authority pathway, which was introduced to accelerate housing supply across the state. The application was declared State Significant Development in April 2025 following an expression of interest process.

<img alt="Aqualand" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="faf6d97d-2671-454f-b85a-fe1c6a7be608" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.51.49%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=diVd28OBVr5.YV.7prrOz.uAanwwwm7a" />

St Leonards has been particularly active with new developments in recent weeks. Developer SP Setia’s <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-sp-setia-targets-st-leonards-skyline-with-40-storey-tod-tower">plans for a new 42-storey tower</a> recently went on exhibition through the same pathway, while <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-stockland-plans-52-storey-538-apartment-st-leonards-tower">Stockland’s 52-storey tower proposal</a> was also recently unveiled.

Aside from the St Leonards project, which is expected to take around nine months to move through the approvals process ahead of a potential 2027 launch, Aqualand is also preparing to launch Boronia, a new apartment project in Roseville comprising around 111 apartments on Larkin Street.

The developer also has approvals in place for the next stage of the Barangaroo precinct, which will feature new residential, retail, hospitality and community uses, alongside a new metro entry across the five-hectare site.

More than 50 new retail destinations are planned for Central Barangaroo, alongside a 270-metre-long boulevard connecting Hickson Park to Nawi Cove. Together with Harbour Park, more than 50 per cent of the precinct will comprise public open space and parkland.

Joel Robinson

First look: Aqualand joins St Leonards apartment party

<section data-scroll-anchor="false" data-testid="conversation-turn-5" data-turn="user" data-turn-id="e65dbe94-e3b6-47f7-b62a-9cbb30c9bf79" data-turn-id-container="e65dbe94-e3b6-47f7-b62a-9cbb30c9bf79" dir="auto">Time &amp; Place’s plans to transform the former David Jones factory building in Surry Hills into a mixed-use residential precinct have gone on exhibition through the NSW Government’s In-fill Affordable Housing pathway.</section>

<section data-scroll-anchor="false" data-testid="conversation-turn-6" data-turn="assistant" data-turn-id="request-WEB:f4d533b7-64a5-413d-86fd-5c99649c2b73-2" data-turn-id-container="request-WEB:f4d533b7-64a5-413d-86fd-5c99649c2b73-2" dir="auto">
The Marlborough House proposal, lodged for the <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/marlborough-house-47-97-marlborough-street-surry-hills-nsw-2010">47-97 Marlborough Street</a> site, would see the adaptive reuse of the heritage-listed warehouse building alongside the construction of new residential additions and a separate apartment building on the northern portion of the site.

The proposal seeks approval for 172 apartments across three buildings, including 15 per cent affordable housing managed by a community housing provider for at least 15 years from occupation.

<img alt="Marlborough" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="5d1d3c2a-bf13-47d6-a335-7c01102cdee1" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.29.36%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=cjMYrbR.BLUlWH4dar0RVDDo0bG.u2YT" />

Interior view from the Northern Building Penthouse overlooking the park

&nbsp;

The redevelopment is planned for the prominent 3,413 sqm site bounded by Marlborough Street, Goodlet Street and Lansdowne Street, directly opposite Eddie Ward Park and around 200 metres from the Surry Hills light rail stop.

Time &amp; Place acquired the former David Jones building in 2024, marking the first time the property had changed hands in around 50 years.

Designed by Wardle, the proposal centres around the adaptive reuse of the former David Jones factory, originally constructed between 1913 and 1935 in the Inter-War Chicagoesque architectural style.

Wardle noted in its Architectural Design Report that the building “occupies a significant place in the industrial and cultural history of Surry Hills” and at its peak was “the largest department store manufacturing facility in Australia, employing over 800 people and fuelling the growth of Sydney’s fashion and retail industries.”

The practice said the project positions itself “not as an isolated intervention, but as a contributor to the civic, social, and architectural grain of the precinct.”

The proposal would deliver 75 apartments within the retained southern heritage building, 59 apartments within the central addition, and a further 38 apartments within the new northern building fronting Lansdowne Street.

Planning documents show the scheme would comprise a mix of heritage apartments, new-build apartments, townhouses and penthouses.

<img alt="Marlborough" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="57758518-40a3-4b83-958c-d06e96a2cffa" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.29.42%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=VerlX9ST5xgBi8.1_YRsqdWTJeT6ygjs" />Interior View of the Heritage Building Apartment

The development would also include a ground-floor retail tenancy on the corner of Marlborough and Lansdowne streets, rooftop communal open space, a landscaped pedestrian link along the western edge of the site, and basement parking accessed from Lansdowne Street via a car stacker system.

&nbsp;

The scheme emerged from a competitive design process run by Urbis, with Wardle ultimately selected as the winning architect ahead of FJC Studio, TZG, Architectus and Wilkinson Eyre.

The Design Integrity Panel later described several aspects of the Wardle scheme as fundamental to the project, including “the stepped character of the new addition to the north of the site”, the landscaped western pedestrian link, and the “garden arrival” experience separating the original Marlborough House from the heritage addition.

Wardle’s design heavily references the site’s industrial and heritage history, while also responding to the surrounding Surry Hills streetscape.

The Architectural Design Report describes Surry Hills as “a finely grained neighbourhood with beautiful and expressive brickworks throughout the suburb,” with the proposal introducing a material palette intended to sit comfortably alongside the existing warehouse fabric and neighbouring terraces.

The report also outlines the project’s relationship with Eddie Ward Park and the broader landscape context of the area.

“Marlborough House occupies a site of deep cultural memory and the neighbouring Eddie Ward Park is of local ecological significance, where natural systems, topography, and stories have long shaped human experience,” Wardle noted in the report.

The architects said the proposal sought to “rebind built form to Country” through landscape, materiality and the adaptive reuse of the heritage structure.

<img alt="Marlborough House" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="9ae3f2f9-c85f-477a-a6f8-b43f6cb97c41" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.29.53%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=B.qUCLqRvJOR.n9CvYcTpaknIX9LuqKZ" />

The project is also being progressed under the NSW Government’s in-fill affordable housing provisions, allowing developments that include affordable housing to access additional height and floor space incentives.

Under the plans, 2,593 sqm of the project’s floor space would be dedicated to affordable housing, slightly exceeding the required 15 per cent threshold.

In its Design Excellence Strategy, Urbis said the project aimed to “sensitively adapt and enhance the heritage-listed building on site through alterations and additions that preserve its historical significance” while delivering “high-quality market and infill affordable housing development in Surry Hills.”

Time &amp; Place has been one of the most active developers nationally in the last 12 to 24 months. Late last year they completed&nbsp;The Queensbridge in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/southbank-vic-3006">Southbank</a>, a mixed-use tower with 353 apartments and a hotel. They are currently selling Park Modern, 246 apartments near the famous Botanic Gardens in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/south-melbourne-vic-3205">South Melbourne</a>, and have future projects, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-wilmot-173-burke-road-28-hope-street-glen-iris-vic-3146">The Wilmot</a>&nbsp;in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/glen-iris-vic-3146">Glen Iris</a>, the redevelopment of the Northcote Plaza, and another tower in South Melbourne.

The developer broke into Sydney just a few years ago with Two Tides in Manly. They have another project nearby, which is at the ultra-luxury end of the market on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/buildings/shoreline-manly-beach-89-90-north-steyne-manly">North Steyne</a>, fronting the beach.

It is also continuing to work through the <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-time-place-settles-on-design-for-the-chimes-potts-point-redevelopment">redevelopment of The Chimes building</a> on Macleay Street in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/potts-point-nsw-2011">Potts Point</a>, as well as a project on <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/time-place-to-take-on-mosman-apartment-market">Mosman's Redan Street</a>.
</section>

First look: Time & Place unveils Marlborough House redevelopment designs for former David Jones warehouse in Surry Hills

The residential transformation of St Kilda Road is set to continue into with more new apartment plans for the sought-after boulevard.

Wing Tai Asia has lodged plans for a major residential tower at 464-466 St Kilda Road, replacing the former VACC House with an 18-storey mixed-use development designed around a retained heritage podium and a sculpted contemporary tower.

The proposal, prepared under Victoria’s Significant Residential Development with Affordable Housing pathway, would deliver 325 apartments and ground-floor retail across the prominent 4,653 sqm boulevard site in Melbourne’s St Kilda Road North Precinct.

The project centres on the adaptive reuse of the site’s heritage-listed VACC Building, an eight-storey office designed by Bernard Evans that has occupied the address for decades. Planning documents state the development would involve “carefully dismantling and conserving off-site the original metal fabric of the podium visible from St Kilda Road,” before reinstating it as the defining frontage of the new scheme.

Above the restored podium, Wing Tai is proposing a curvilinear residential tower. The scheme includes 172 one-bedroom apartments, 63 two-bedroom apartments, 66 three-bedroom apartments, and 24 four-bedroom apartments, alongside two ground-floor food and beverage tenancies fronting St Kilda Road.

The tower has been designed with substantial articulation and variable setbacks to minimise perceived bulk and maintain view corridors along the boulevard. Urbis, which prepared the planning report, said the design “has been significantly articulated through a curvilinear design” with “an interplay with materials, façade expression and depth” to create visual separation and visual interest.

The proposal also includes 254 basement car spaces, landscaped pedestrian links connecting St Kilda Road and Queens Lane, and a biophilic landscape strategy featuring canopy trees, raised planters, cascading greenery and a glass oculus pool overlooking the eastern frontage.

Planning documents confirm the $270.1 million development will contribute 3 per cent of project costs to the Social Housing Growth Fund as part of the application process.

Wing Tai acquired the St Kilda Road property in 2018 alongside Abacus Property Group for $95.38 million, before later consolidating ownership of the site. The property previously served as the Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce headquarters for around 60 years.

The transformation of the St Kilda Rd boulevard is already beginning to materialise, with a number of high-profile projects recently completed, launched, or approaching launch as developers continue to back the long-term appeal of the precinct.

Among the most notable recent completions is Louise by Samuel Property Group, just off the strip on Queens Lane, the same pocket Hirsch &amp; Faigen recently launched The Queensbury. Mirvac is too on the same street with The Albertine, which is approaching completion.

Dexus recently secured approval for its slice of St Kilda Road, while Gurner also has approved plans for the precinct.

Wing Tai unveils 325-apartment St Kilda Road tower on former VACC House site

Malaysian developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/s-p-setia">SP Setia</a> is the latest to jump into St Leonards booming Transport Oriented Development precinct.

The developer, which has previously delivered Sapphire by the Gardens apartment development in Melbourne, identified the Atchison Street site in 2023. It filed a Scoping Report around 12 months ago, and now has revealed the designs for the new&nbsp;40-storey mixed-use tower.

The State Significant Development Application covers <a href="https://next-portal.urban.com.au/projects/14650/summary">20-22 Atchison Street</a>, a 1,374 sqm site positioned between St Leonards Station and the new Crows Nest Metro station.

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/cox-architecture">COX Architecture</a>, the project would deliver 181 apartments, above a four-storey commercial podium, five basement levels, and new public domain works along Mitchell Street. The apartment mix comprises 35 one-bedroom apartments, 39 one-bedroom-plus-study apartments, 85 two-bedroom apartments, and 22 three-bedroom residences.

The proposal has been lodged as a shop-top housing development under the NSW Government’s TOD planning pathway, which allows increased density around key transport infrastructure. The site sits within the recently rezoned Crows Nest Accelerated TOD Precinct.

<img alt="First look: SP Setia targets St Leonards skyline with 40-storey TOD tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b799673d-48e2-46b0-801a-0e33a9330100" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/atchinson%20site.png?VersionId=dPh0UfwfaHpbFL1R7H1cbZNbIW0CHbCC" />

SP Setia acquired the Atchison Street site as part of its continued expansion into the Australian apartment market. In comments made to City &amp; Country (The Edge Malaysia) in 2023, SP Setia President and CEO Datuk Choong Kai Wai described the acquisition as “a strategic move” aligned with the group’s post-pandemic market recovery strategy.

“Our target for this exceptional development is local and overseas buyers, including first-home buyers, downsizers and investors,” Choong said.

The tower has been designed as a slender vertical form rising from a mixed-use podium, with COX Architecture positioning the development as a response to the evolving St Leonards and Crows Nest skyline.

“The purpose of the project is to facilitate the delivery of high-quality housing at a strategically located site and deliver a built tower outcome that is consistent with the desired future character of St Leonards and aligns with the TOD controls,” the design report stated.

<img alt="First look: SP Setia targets St Leonards skyline with 40-storey TOD tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b1a85eee-76f7-436c-a6da-73ba827b9b13" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/atchinson%20entry.png?VersionId=dA9jHGPMcm.dDbwk4QfxqWiY5bfh3UVt" />

The podium would incorporate retail uses fronting Atchison Street, commercial tenancies, landscaped communal areas, and pedestrian improvements along Mitchell Street. Vehicle access and loading would be consolidated via Atchison Lane.

Residents would have access to more than 665 sqm of communal indoor and outdoor spaces, while the development proposes 96 parking spaces across five basement levels.

The proposal also includes a commitment for 10 per cent of residential floor space to be allocated toward affordable housing through a monetary contribution.

COX said the tower form responds directly to the emerging high-density character of the precinct while seeking to maximise solar access, cross ventilation, and outlook from apartments.

<img alt="First look: SP Setia targets St Leonards skyline with 40-storey TOD tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2163f85c-f63b-4be3-aafa-f8763976cec5" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Article%20Feature%20Image%20%28Grid%29_5.png?VersionId=WiAmtIKJ6.ZQ41EtYEQ1fol7AeorKBlL" />

“The building is orientated towards north,” the Apartment Design Guide compliance report noted, adding that the tower’s slim form was driven by the constrained inner-urban site dimensions.

The design also incorporates landscaped setbacks and communal open space at podium level, intended to soften the interface with surrounding streets and improve pedestrian amenity.

The project adds to a growing wave of redevelopment proposals reshaping St Leonards and Crows Nest following the opening of the Sydney Metro City line and the NSW Government’s push for higher-density housing around major transport nodes.

Last week Stockland filed plans just down the road. They want to build a <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/601-pacific-highway-st-leonards-nsw-2065">52-storey tower on Pacific Highway</a>.

Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-stockland-plans-52-storey-538-apartment-st-leonards-tower">First look: Stockland plans 52-storey, 538-apartment St Leonards tower&nbsp;</a>

First look: SP Setia targets St Leonards skyline with 40-storey TOD tower

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/urban-property-group">Urban Property Group</a> has revealed plans for a new mixed-use tower at 10 Dangar Street, Wickham, advancing a proposal that would reshape the southern gateway to Newcastle’s city centre with one of the city’s tallest residential buildings.

The State Significant Development proposal, now on exhibition, seeks approval for a <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/bowline-10-dangar-street-wickham-nsw-2293">43-storey tower</a> immediately adjacent to the Newcastle Interchange. The project would deliver around 200 apartments, including 42 affordable housing dwellings, alongside 99 co-living units, a 171-room hotel, retail space, and new public domain integrated through the site.

The scheme marks a significant escalation of plans previously approved for the site. Urban Property Group took over the prominent 2,904 sqm parcel, where excavation and demolition had already commenced under an earlier consent for a 14-storey mixed-use development.

<img alt="First look: Urban Property Group unveils Newcastle’s next supertower at Wickham interchange" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="58a96dd9-407f-4d20-86b4-94e4bfeef74b" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/wickham%20podium.png?VersionId=LGlf08pdFGAZDzvx_CXC4XakHNZRuEE0" />

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/sjb-architects">SJB</a>, the tower has been conceived as a landmark transit-oriented development anchored to the Newcastle Interchange precinct. The proposal includes 245 build-to-sell apartments across a mix of one, two, and three-bedroom residences, as well as two penthouses. Fifteen apartments and one operational unit are earmarked for NDIS housing. The co-living component would add a further 99 units, while the podium would accommodate retail uses and hotel facilities.

SJB said the site presents “a valuable opportunity to anchor the precinct by setting the standard for design, active ground planes and character at the key southern gateway.”

The architecture responds directly to the site’s position beside major transport infrastructure and within one of Newcastle’s fastest-evolving urban renewal precincts. The tower form sits above a sculpted podium designed to frame new public spaces, including a through-site pedestrian link connecting Station Street to Hannell Street, landscaped plazas, and activated retail edges.

<img alt="First look: Urban Property Group unveils Newcastle’s next supertower at Wickham interchange" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="a7bd6ff0-f7db-4ce8-a6dc-ea56e72c6149" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/wickham%20lanne.png?VersionId=xzf39VADyhj7zBQY2I9fx9vI62u2tuSb" />

The design report describes the project as part of the broader transition of Wickham into “a vibrant, high-quality mixed-use urban precinct” that leverages proximity to the station, open space, and regional connectivity.

A detailed public art strategy has also been prepared for the development. The strategy positions the project as “a transit-oriented development of state significance at the gateway to Newcastle’s city centre” and outlines a series of integrated artworks responding to Newcastle’s industrial and transport heritage.

Creative Road’s curatorial framework for the project, titled Unveil, draws on “stratified surfaces, carved volumes, and light-filled apertures” while referencing Newcastle’s transformation from an industrial city into a contemporary education and technology hub.

<img alt="First look: Urban Property Group unveils Newcastle’s next supertower at Wickham interchange" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="77a882bb-14b1-4d28-99ff-9438e39508c0" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/wickham%20site.png?VersionId=cevgo_vN0eKPK78P8YcEu3mKPLkpFqE7" />

The proposal is being advanced through the NSW Housing Delivery Authority pathway after being declared State Significant Development in June 2025. The accompanying scoping report states the development aims to “maximise the site’s proximity to the Newcastle Interchange by delivering transit-oriented development” while increasing housing supply and affordable housing provision within the Newcastle LGA.

Urban Property Group’s plans align with the long-term strategic vision established under the Wickham Master Plan, which identified the interchange precinct as suitable for substantial uplift in height and density. The current proposal would significantly intensify that vision, positioning the tower among the tallest developments proposed for Newcastle.

The site sits immediately north of the Newcastle Interchange, bounded by Dangar Street, Hannell Street, and Charles Street. It is surrounded by a rapidly growing cluster of residential towers and mixed-use projects that have emerged following the completion of the light rail and transport interchange.

Chris Johnson

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