Developer to spend $60 million to build retail and apartment buildings on Jetty Road, Glenelg
A BUILDING overlooking Glenelg’s square and beach would be a “diamond in the crown of Jetty Road”, says developer Andrew Taplin. Here’s his latest $60m plan.
DEVELOPER Andrew Taplin plans to spend close to $60 million to build two retail and apartment buildings on Jetty Rd, Glenelg.
One would be eight-storeys high at the northern corner of Jetty Rd and Colley Tce, overlooking Moseley Square.
The other, at the southwestern corner of Jetty Rd and Partridge St, would be seven storeys.
Mr Taplin said the building overlooking the square and beach would be a “diamond in the crown of Jetty Rd”.
“It’s important when you look back from Moseley Square you see something that is striking and adds to the streetscape,” Mr Taplin said.
He said he was doing his “little bit to help revitalise Jetty Rd and the area generally”.
“They’ll be fresh, they’ll be knew, they’ll have better facilities, more carparking and obviously the added advantage of apartments above,” he said.
Mr Taplin has lodged plans for the buildings with the state Development Assessment Commission (DAC).
The height limit on most of Jetty Rd is five storeys.
However, planning rules allow up to eight storeys on the two sites because they are larger than 1500sq m.
Both would include above-ground carparking.
Holdfast Bay Deputy Mayor Susan Lonie said the council wanted to limit buildings at the corner of Jetty Rd and Colley Tce to five storeys to stop them overshadowing the square.
“While (the) council supports developments with the potential to stimulate the local economy and add to the precinct’s vibrancy, we believe the five-storey height limit strikes the right balance,” Cr Lonie said.
She said a five-storey limit would ensure people could enjoy outdoor dining and other entertainment in Moseley Square “with natural light and a sense of open space, without being overshadowed”.
“We look forward to providing a detailed response to the DAC, in which we will reiterate our preference for a five-storey height limit in this location,” Cr Lonie said.
Holdfast Bay Residents’ Alliance president Jack Messenger said the public had lost confidence in the DAC because it continually approved buildings over the maximum height allowed in an area.
“It’s disappointing they’re even allowed to do that,” Mr Messenger said.
State Government modelling shows a five-storey building on the corner of Jetty Rd and Colley Tce would overshadow at least part of the square at 9am in every season apart from summer.
Mr Taplin said his proposed building would not extend to the boundaries of the block and, as a mainly residential building, would be shorter than a similar commercial building, which would tend to have higher ceilings.
“The overshadowing models we’ve submitted demonstrate there’s virtually no difference to what we’re proposing versus a five-storey option,” he said.
He said the existing 12-storey Colley Court building, just north of his proposal on Colley Tce, produced a bigger shadow, which is confirmed by government diagrams.
Mr Taplin also owns the GU Film House cinema, which opened in Glenelg last year, the Bayside Village shopping centre and The Beachouse entertainment complex as well as numerous smaller buildings.