Territory builder Neil Sunners promises to complete the Seabreeze apartments

The developer of an unfinished Darwin apartment block minutes from the sea hopes to sell the project in coming months to breathe new life into the stalled construction.

Seabreeze apartments Nightcliff drawings December 2022

The developer of Nightcliff’s unfinished Seabreeze apartments hopes to sell the project in coming months to breathe new life into the stalled construction.

Sunbuild managing director Neil Sunners said he is targeting a resolution which could see work resume on the project after almost a decade.

Mr Sunners was speaking at the project’s site on the corner of Dick Ward and Progress Drives promoting the benefits of the Territory Co-ordinator’s role alongside Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro.

He said in 2016 the Territory economy had essentially stopped following the Inpex-driven economic boom of the previous decade, when Sunbuild put Seabreeze on ice.

With his retirement planned for the end of this year, Mr Sunners said he wanted Seabreeze sorted.

“It’s eight-and-a-half-years, it’s a long time,” he said.

“We’re actually talking with a client at the moment to purchase the whole project and finish it off for them as a one off. We’ve got until April to make that decision.

Lia Finocchiaro and Neil Sunners at the Seabreeze site. Picture: Camden Smith

“If that isn’t happening, we’re going to put it back on the market and start managing it off the plan and hopefully the Homegrown Territory grant will activate and stimulate as well, that’s what we’re walking towards.”

Mr Sunners said the Territory Co-ordinator would provide certainty around project timeframes and would benefit developments like Seabreeze through increased economic activity resulting from streamlined approvals.

“Developers in the Territory need confidence in the timelines and if we can understand it’s going to take x-[amount of] time to get through the processes, this is actually going to give the developers the opportunity to understand (when to spend money).

Mrs Finocchiaro and Mr Sunners on site at Seabreeze on January 4, 2025. Picture: Camden Smith

“That’s what the Territory Co-ordinator will do. It actually just makes sure that our authorities all do their job in the quickest possible time, and that’s where the Territory Co-ordinator can step-in to say ‘We’ve got to have this done within a month, not six months’.

“And that’s the uncertainty of the development process that we have. The Territory Co-ordinator is planned to fix that problem and that’s what we need as a developer to go forward.

“I want to say to the people who are a bit worried about it that they’re not changing the legislation to any other acts or processes. Be confident in it that it is only a time thing, to make sure that people are accountable for their time.”

Ms Finocchiaro said the Territory Co-oridinator would change the Territory’s business landscape.

“To rebuild the Territory’s economy, we have to deliver on our Territory Co-ordinator legislation which is going to change the way in which the Territory does business,” she said. “To be the most competitive place in this country to invest we have to change our regulatory environment to make us more competitive. We have to make sure that our approval time frames are hitting the spot so that investors can have certainty and confidence to spend their money here in the Territory.”

Registrations are open now for the next online forum discussing the Territory Co-ordinator. The Bill will be discussed when sittings resume on February 11.