$70m unit blocks approved for historic Salvation Army site on the northern beaches
A trio of residential blocks, which will include 126 dwellings, will be built on a historic Salvation Army site in Dee Why.
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A $70 million trio of residential blocks will be built on a historic site after being approved by a planning panel.
The 126 dwelling development will be built on the Salvation Army site at Fisher Rd, Dee Why, which dates back to 1892.
It was unanimously approved by the Northern Sydney Planning Panel on Tuesday.
The one seven-storey and two six-storey blocks will contain 61, 23 and 43 dwellings respectively.
There will also be basement parking for 191 vehicles and a rooftop garden.
The history of the application dates back to February 2012 but it was not until late last year that developer, Hamptons By Rose, submitted its preferred plan for the site.
A number of issues were raised and the developer tweaked the plans earlier this year.
A concern raised throughout the process has been that of heritage conservation.
The apartments will replace a Salvation Army aged care and assisted living building which is no longer used.
In the centre of the site is the heritage listed Pacific Lodge, which the developer intended to turn into units.
After concerns were raised Pacific Lodge will now be preserved for possible future commercial use.
The site dates back to 1892 and is one of the Army’s earliest sites in Australia.
The Salvation Army came to Australia in 1880 and northern beaches church member Elizabeth Jenkins bequeathed 1740 acres of land from Dee Why to Mona Vale to the movement when she died in 1900.
Pacific Lodge was built for Salvation Army officers to holiday in but was mostly used for respite housing for drunks.
The proposal, which reaches a maximum height of 15.9m, exceeds the 13m limit for the area.
However, the developer argued it has “sufficient environmental planning grounds” to justify the contravention.
The planning panel agreed and approved the development.
The panel’s written decision, detailing their reasoning, will be published within the next few days.
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