Northern homes razed for controversial $22.5m apartment complex

WORK has started to demolish at least six Paradise homes to make way for a $22.5 million apartment complex, to the grief of long-time neighbours.

An artist’s impression of the $22.5 million apartment complex on Gameau Road, Paradise, next to the Paradise Interchange.

WORK has started to demolish six of Paradise homes to make way for a $22.5 million apartment complex, to the grief of long-time neighbours.

The bulldozers started work to clear the land at Gameau Rd and Woodmere Ave last month after Campbelltown Council approved developer Barrio’s application to demolish all buildings at the site.

Long-time opponent of the project, Kym Tilbrook, hoped the new construction would be limited to two storeys.

“It’s pretty sad,” Mr Tilbrook said.

“Two houses have gone, another four to go at this stage.

“We’ve been fighting this for three years, it’s out of character for the area.

“We and the council don’t accept it,” he said.

The residents would accept two storeys.”

Another resident, Ivan Caon, said the bulldozers moving in was a sad sight to behold.

“It was inevitable,” he said.

“This whole suburb is changing and it is disappointing for us.

“It’s the type of development that is the problem.”

The demolition work comes as Barrio next Wednesday heads back to court to appeal the State Government’s refusal of its third and final stage of the project.

The state’s planning commission knocked back the development application in February last year, saying the 75 student accommodation units and 28 apartments were too large for the area.

Barrio managing director Glen Vollebregt was “very confident with the appeal”.

“We’re confident we’ll reach a compromise. We’re keen to move ahead in a timely manner,” Mr Vollebregt said.

He last year promised to consider scaling back the project to appease neighbours and last week stood by those comments.

He was prepared to reduce the height of the complex by “roughly 20 per cent”, taking it from five to four storeys.

If no agreement could be reached on that option, he was open to a traditional townhouse-style development.

Glen Vollebregt, the developer behind the controversial $22.5 million apartment development next to Paradise Interchange.

Mr Vollebregt maintained the complex would be one of the state’s best transport-orientated developments and said its construction would create “hundreds of building jobs”.

Stages one and two of the project — including 14 and 10 two-storey townhouses — have already been approved.