Northcote Plaza update: 28-storey tower, cinema in $500m proposal
A residential tower would soar above a revamped Northcote Plaza featuring city-style cafe laneways and 660 new apartments under bold redevelopment plans put to Darebin City Council this week.
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A revamped Northcote Plaza would feature a cinema, amphitheatre and 28-storey apartment tower under plans submitted to Darebin City Council this week.
Developer LAS Group is also hoping to add 6500sq m of green space to complement the neighbouring All Nations Park and create a bike friendly plaza area as well as a Degraves Street style open-air laneway lined with cafes and retailers.
Renders for the $500m proposed project dubbed Northcote Green also show five new apartment buildings would range from four to 28 storeys tall and include a residents cinema.
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Darebin City Council mayor Susan Rennie said council were “as surprised as the community that a tower of this size is being proposed”.
“Over the next few weeks our planning staff will review the application,” Cr Rennie said. “But I know that they have already raised serious questions about the proposed building height.”
The plaza in the heart of the suburb is already home to the 10-storey Acacia apartment tower.
The new development would be spread over a further 1.3ha of the plaza, with 6500sq m of this to become a landscaped plaza area linking High St to All Nations Park.
About 600 construction jobs and about 500 ongoing positions would be created if the overhaul is given the green light.
Pending planning approval, it could be under construction by late 2021 or early 2022 with the developer confirming they would have funding in place once a permit is granted.
Estimates suggest up to 1200 people could live in the resulting apartments.
LAS Group managing director Les Smith said the intention was to update a substantial section of the plaza to meet the needs of an increasingly gentrified community.
“The site certainly does have an iconic status within the community – our proposed revitalisation has been designed to enhance the precinct, taking everything locals already love about the existing area and adding to it,” Mr Smith said.
“This is first and foremost a community precinct — whether you’re visiting to do the shopping, meeting up with friends, getting some study done, or just going for a walk.”
LAS Group have also commissioned retail benefit estimates by Macroplan, which show a $21m benefit to local traders, starting as construction crews commence work.
Mr Smith said now was the perfect time to consider such a project which would help address a housing shortage as well as provide jobs and economic benefits.
“In this case you have a suburb in need of diversified housing choice, affordable housing — we have partnered with The Women’s Property Initiative to provide very affordable and much-needed housing — and a centre that needs to be updated, especially as a major tenant and drawcard to the centre, Kmart, is already vacating,” he said.
“This precinct redevelopment will deliver much-needed new amenities and infrastructure along with the delivery of numerous community spaces, to ensure it will remain viable and can support the needs of the community for years to come.”
It is estimated up to 1200 new residents could move into the apartments if they are built as proposed.
The proposed plans have been designed by Woods Bagot architects, with senior associate Ana Sa noting the site’s historic use as the Northcote Brickworks would get a nod with the use of artisan bricks.
Construction would have minimal impact on traders, according to the developer.
Today, Northcote locals and fans of the plaza have taken to social media declaring the proposed 28-storey tower is too high, and questioning whether it suits the area’s character.
Many also voiced concerns a proposed reduction in carparking would cause problems for shoppers at the plaza.
However, some supported the redevelopment, calling the current plaza woefully underused.
Cr Rennie said the public would be given a chance to comment on the proposal at a later stage, and a decision would not be made until late this year at the earliest.
Northcote Plaza will soon lose anchor tenant Kmart, which is expected to close on November 22 this year after more than 39 years at the popular shopping centre.
A pair of Coles stores, also in the plaza, as well as the Kmart, were sold to private investors in two separate transactions totalling $60m last year.
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