Plans for town centre surrounding Northern Beaches Hospital could mean 10,000 new homes in Frenchs Forest
A REVISED plan for the Frenchs Forest town centre would see more the number of homes surrounding the new Northern Beaches Hospital quadruple.
Manly
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A REVISED plan for the Frenchs Forest town centre would see more the number of homes surrounding the Northern Beaches Hospital quadruple.
In total, 5360 dwellings will be pumped into the new town centre on Forest High School, up from the 2200 announced in November.
If an east-west B-Line and Beaches Link Tunnel were built, council chief executive officer Mark Ferguson said the number of homes could increase to 10,000.
It follows almost 1000 submissions. Mr Ferguson said the increase was a result of that feedback.
He said modest height increases in some areas outside the town centre also meant development was feasible.
“This plan provides the overarching strategy for all future planning in Frenchs Forest and sets a 20-year vision for development and growth,” he said.
“It provides an exciting opportunity to create a once-in-a-lifetime urban renewal opportunity on the northern beaches with a brand new town centre, new homes and jobs.”
Under a three-phase approach, 3000 homes will be added around the hospital and slightly to the south of Warringah Rd in Karingal Crescent.
“The cornerstone will be a new, walkable and vibrant town centre where the community can meet, shop, dine and work day and night, enjoying a commercial, retail and recreational environment complemented by open spaces,” Mr Ferguson said.
But the other 2000-odd homes would only be rezoned when either a northern beaches tunnel or an east-west B-Line were introduced.
If both modes of transport were created, Mr Ferguson said there could be up to 10,000 dwellings built, extending well south of Warringah Rd and east of the Wakehurst Pkwy.
“In order to develop this area responsibly and to best manage the road network, we’re proposing a phased and managed approach,” Mr Ferguson said.
He said extra growth beyond 3000 dwellings was “dependent on the State Government’s commitment and delivery of transport infrastructure, including a BRT and the Beaches Link Tunnel”.
It follows the Planning Department’s declaration of the area as a priority precinct on June 1.
The department’s deputy secretary of growth design and programs, Brendan Nelson, said Frenchs Forest being labelled a priority precinct meant it had the State Government’s utmost focus.
“Principally, it is about giving all of the work that has been done to date a bit of focus and implementation,” he told the Manly Daily.
Phase one of the plan cannot begin until a new school is built next to the Warringah Aquatic Centre.
The aquatic centre will be retained, along with the sporting fields, and a vertical 2000-student school alongside them. It follows negative feedback about replacing the pool with a school in the original plan.
The council has indicated it could be two years before construction starts.
And Mr Nelson said the Planning Department would do everything it could to fast-track the process.
“We will be working with the Education Department over the next few months to identify the master planning of that relocated school that then will open up opportunities for the town centre to evolve coming forward,” he said.
While he said they were yet to confirm exact modes of transport, a rapid bus system was being considered.
Mr Nelson stressed that the State Government was not going to take the plan back to the drawing board.
“The council and the community have been on a long journey to get to this point, we are not about to change the direction the council has taken ... What we are focused on though is drilling in on how it will work.”
The council’s masterplan indicates 2300 jobs would be created through the hospital and new town centre.
A target of 10 to 15 per cent affordable rental housing and a range of economic development opportunities for businesses are also part of the masterplan.
The plan will also promote environmental sustainability principles, including working towards a Green Star rating.
The plan will go before an extraordinary council meeting on Tuesday.
The Planning Department will then hold a drop-in information session on August 10.
It will be held at Galstaun Function Centre, 5 Grattan Cres, Frenchs Forest, from 5-8pm.
Staff from the planning, education, transport and roads departments will be on hand, as well as the council.
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