High-rise sporting, recreation hub planned in Pymble as part of $9m development

A high rise sporting facility catering for boxing, basketball, badminton, tennis and football is being planned for a major site on the north shore.

A concept plan of the Pymble development.

A major new sporting facility could soon be coming to the north shore as part of a multimillion-dollar development planned for Pymble.

A nine-storey sport and recreation hub catering for everything from boxing to badminton would be built at 6 West St under a $8.8m proposal recently lodged with Ku-ring-gai Council.

Plans show the development would involve the demolition of the existing commercial building at the site, currently home to tenants including disability support agency Unisson Disability.

The new multistorey venue would have facilities catering for sports including basketball, tennis and badminton.

It would also have a boxing gym, three cafes, basketball courts, a soccer/tennis court, changing rooms and recreational facilities for uses including yoga, music, dance and art.

A photo of the current building at the site.

The facility would be able to be booked out for public hire along with organisations such as schools. Plans state the development would address a current shortage of sporting facilities in the region and could enhance “the community’s overall wellbeing”.

“The proposal will greatly benefit the local community, as both sports and educational facilities are for all demographics of the residents,” the plan state. “The lower levels also aim to provide an active street frontage with cafes which will contribute to energising and creating vibrancy to West St.”

An architectural plan of the development.

A plan of management shows the facility would offer a range of centre-based programs and host sporting competitions including badminton tournaments. If approved, it would operate from 6am to 10pm, seven days a week.

Three levels of basement carparking are included in the proposal, catering for 42 cars and 18 bikes. A sports pro shop is also included in the proposal.

The proposal comes amid record demand for new sporting facilities on the north shore, reflected in a study by the Northern Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils which identified a gap between demand and supply of facilities.

The gap is expected to grow in future years, partly due to population growth in the region and rising participation in competitive sports.

The plans have been lodged by Lorraine Fashion Pty Ltd and are under assessment by Ku-ring-gai Council.

Company owner Lion Li said high-rise sporting facilities could provide a solution to the shortage of traditional outdoor playing fields.

“We love sports but the shortage is very serious in the upper north shore – especially for kids training and casual playing,” he said. “The only place we often have for group training and sports is in private schools so we hope we can provide more sports training for the public.

“Also we want to provide some leisure sports activities for the area for the residential growth in Pymble.”