Santa Sophia College Box Hill: Planning Commission decides fate of $123m plan
A $123 million masterplan for an 1800-student high-rise catholic school in the heart of a new mini-metropolis in Sydney’s northwest has been decided on.
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Groundbreaking plans for a $123 million high-rise catholic school — earmarked for the heart of a new mini-metropolis in northwest Sydney — has been determined by the Independent Planning Commission.
The revolutionary vision for the 1860-student kinder to Year 12 school by the Parramatta Catholic Education Diocese was approved by the Planning Commission on Tuesday for the landmark site at the Box Hill Town Centre.
The development features a six-storey high-rise school, made up of a series of learning spaces, creative and performing hubs and outdoor sporting facilities on the rooftop.
A commission representative said the proposal resulted in positive outcomes as the school would be built in an “emerging town centre” which featured effective transport and infrastructure.
The spokesman said the school would provide “an activated and vibrant hub for the community and meeting demand for educational facilities in the growth area”.
But the multimillion-dollar masterplan for the site did not come without a series of concerns raised by neighbouring residents, with a total of 69 objections highlighting issues around site suitability, built form, urban design, traffic, transport and safety at the school.
“After careful consideration of all the evidence, the Commission has today determined to approve the SSD application, subject to conditions – concluding the provision of additional school infrastructure in a growth area “is in the broader public interest”,” the commission spokesman said.
A series of conditions were imposed on the approved development to offset environmental impacts.
The school had initially been earmarked for a spacious site on Terry Rd in Box Hill and would only be 1-2 storey building over a number of acres.
The land had been purchased by the Diocese of Parramatta before they mysteriously switched to the corner of Red Gables Road and the extension of Fontana Parade as a location for the new school.
The application for the six storey building to the Department of Planning received so many objections that it was deferred to the Independent Planning Panel.
There were 69 objections in total of 82 submissions to the Department of Planning.
“Schools are constructed to outlast many generations and key to their placement is the capacity to expand,”” wrote Kenthurst resident Karl Medak.
“The proposed development is constrained to an acre of land when CEDP have another alternative that was previously reserved for this school that is over five times larger …”
Elias Younes from Kellyville wrote that it “made no sense to place a school on top of a shopping centre”.
“Forcing students to be taught in a high rise school when there is already a selected and dedicated lot of land five times the size of the footprint that the Gables site has, they are being stripped of having external places during break and the general feeling of openness that I am sure they would appreciate,” Mr Younes wrote.
The NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment deferred the decision to the Independent Planning Commission because the Department received more than 25 public objections.
But not everyone was against the proposal with the Independent Planning Commission receiving 51 public comments, with 46 in favour of it.
William Mills wrote that his grandson would be attending the school and “it’s construction is absolutely necessary to meeting local needs for a quality education”.
Another parent wrote “we need a Catholic high school in this growing area as we have to travel so far to send them to high school....”
Santa Sophia principal Mark De Vries said he was delighted by the outcome.
“This decision provides clarity and certainty for all local families in the Box Hill area and greater northwest Sydney that they will have an option for the suburb’s first secondary school,” he said.
“The plans have always been to open the school in semester two of next year — which means construction will commence from next month.”
Mr De Vries said the learning agenda will be a highlight for the school.
“We are going to give students a range contemporary, skills-based pathway options in state-of-the-art facilities — we want to prepare students for the future,” he said.
“The building will be unique but what happens inside the classroom is far more important.
“I want to thank the community for their support and patience for what has been a long process.”
The multimillion-dollar development application for Santa Sophia College, spanning across a 15,000 sqm site, was submitted by the Parramatta Catholic Education Diocese for the Box Hill Town Centre to The Hills Shire Council on December 21 2018.
Planning documents for the school revealed a proposal for the construction of a six-storey educational facility across more than 15,000 sqm, featuring a knowledge centre and cafe, art and applied science hub, multipurpose hall, music, dance, and drama hub and a science and fitness research hub. Students will also have access to surrounding parks and sporting fields.