Waitara Park Ave: Statewide Planning development approved after objections

A contentious development plan for more than 160 units on a residential street on the upper north shore has been approved after a legal challenge by developers.

A contentious plan to build more than 160 high-rise units on an amalgamated ‘super lot’ in Waitara has been approved in court after hitting opposition from residents and local planning authorities.

Five buildings each standing up to five-storeys tall are set to transform Park Ave after developers Statewide Planning Pty Ltd lodged a successful legal challenge to the Land and Environment Court.

Located opposite Mark Taylor Oval, the development is set to have 165 units, ground level communal open space and 200 basement carparking spaces.

Nine properties have been consolidated into an amalgamated ‘super lot’ to make way for the $60.2 million development.

The proposal previously made headlines when one of the previous property owners stood defiant against the proposal — refusing to allow the acquisition of the home – before agreeing to sell.

The proposal has also been met with objections from neighbours due to size and bulk of the project in the residential area

The development will be located at 22-32 Park Ave.

The Land and Environment Court decision comes after the Sydney North Planning Panel refused the proposal in May 2020 due to concerns including a breach of the site’s 17.5m height limit.

The development – originally planned to be six storeys tall – was reduced to five storeys as part of amended plans by Statewide Planning in March last year.

The planning panel, in reconsidering the proposal, maintained its objection to the development – stating revised plans would still breach the height limit by 1.2m and were “unsatisfactory” with Hornby Council’s local planning laws.

Homes have already been demolished for the proposal.

Statewide Planning Pty Ltd took the case to the Land and Environment Court, arguing strict compliance with the height limit would be “unreasonable” and “unnecessary”.

“The variation in height from the standard is ‘particularly small’ (and) does not have a material impact on the amenity of the environmental values of surrounding properties,” Statewide Planning stated.

The court held on-site meetings and heard submissions from neighbours who raised concerns of potential overshadowing and privacy impacts.

Land and Environment Commissioner Tim Horton, in his decision last week, approved the plans on the grounds it would “contribute to the housing needs of the community.”

A site plan of the development

“I am also satisfied that the proposed development will be in the public interest notwithstanding the contravention of the height standard because the proposed development is consistent with the objectives of the R4 zoning (of the site),” he said.

The development was approved on 81 conditions including a limit on construction work between 7am and 5pm Monday to Saturday.

The North Shore Times contacted Statewide Planning for comment but did not receive a response at the time of publication.