Windermere Bay Precinct at old Claremont Primary School site gets tick from Glenorchy City Council

Council has made a call on the $200m development proposed for the former Claremont Primary School, which will have 315 apartments and townhouses, shops, a cafe and childcare centre. LATEST FROM COUNCIL >>

• Plans open for comment on Windermere Bay Precinct redevelopment of old Claremont Primary School
• Proposal for $200 million development on former Claremont Primary School site

GLENORCHY City Council has given the green light to a major housing and mixed use development at the site of the former Claremont primary school.

The proposed Windermere Bay Precinct will feature 315 apartments and townhouses, local shops, a cafe, facilities including a gym and pool, and a childcare centre within a parkland setting.

The $200m development, designed by Circa Morris-Nunn Architects, will keep the original heritage-listed school building to be used for community facilities.

Issues including the state’s housing shortage, preventing urban sprawl and local residents’ desire to keep Claremont’s character were thrashed out as the development was considered at a Glenorchy planning authority meeting.

Former Claremont Primary School redevelopment

The planning authority unanimously approved the development.

Local residents opposed to the proposal raised concerns about the 26m height of the buildings, the housing density and increased traffic.

Dik Jarman of Circa Morris-Nunn said it was the kind of development needed to address Tasmania’s increasing population and housing shortage.

“What we don’t want is quarter acre blocks going all the way to the horizon, all the way to Mt Field,” he said.

“We have got to bite the bullet and start building these things or we are going to lose what we love about Tasmania.”

More than a dozen locals spoke against the development during the two-and-a-half hours of the meeting devoted to it.

Glenorchy Mayor Kristie Johnston said she hoped the development would enhance the Claremont community and address some of the growing municipality’s housing needs.

“Our community is changing … we need to look at denser housing,” she said.

$200m ‘Empress Towers’ too big for backyards

By Emma Hope, March 11:

A LARGE group of Claremont residents have expressed concern that a $200m development at the former primary school site would be like building the “Empress Towers” in their backyard.

More than 50 concerned residents gathered at the Cadbury Rd site on Wednesday where a proposal to build 300 apartments and townhouses is before council.

They flew balloons to the 26m height of the proposed development.

“We don’t want to see the Empress Towers being built in our backyard,” resident Shane Alderton said.

‘The whole site is heritage listed, not just the school, so is that being taken into consideration?”

L-R Neil Morrison, Jenny Ploughman, Paul Campton, Mary Moles, Shane Alderton, Marty Watkins some of the residents concerned about proposed plans for redevelopment of the old Claremont Primary School site, with balloons to show the height of the proposed development. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones

Mr Alderton said the height was not appropriate.

“There’s nothing in this area as tall as the buildings being proposed.

“I want to see development on the site, it’s an eyesore as it is. But let’s have proper development and consult the community.”

The rundown site, which has been subjected to fire and vandalism, has been the subject of various residential proposals over the years and has remained empty since the school shut in 2011.

The land was purchased in 2019 for an undisclosed sum by Chinese-born Hobart businessman Kai Yang.

The balloons were floated to the height of the new development – which residents say is far too big for the area. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones

Resident Paul Campton has lived in Claremont for 40 years and has concerns.

“At up to eight levels and 26m it’s not respecting the local residents.

“It’s reducing the amenity for them, increasing traffic by 48 per cent and we’re also concerned about environmental issues.

“It’s a huge height and a huge number of people in a small area.

“We’re concerned about the affect it will have on Claremont in the long term.”

The Windermere Bay Precinct proposal would feature 315 residences, shops, a cafe, facilities including a gym and pool and a child care centre within a parkland setting.

Associate director of Circa Morris-Nunn, who designed the project, Dik Jarman said a number of community consultations sessions had been held and feedback taken on-board.

“We have reduced the number of apartments by over 100, which is a significant reduction in scale,” he said.

Artists impressions of the Windermere Bay Precinct, showing the park in front of the restored primary school which would become a community space, if the development is approved.

“People talk about height being an issue, what we’ve done is let the trees be the dictator of the height.

“There’s the beautiful school that we want to restore and keep in community hand. The only way we can do that, because it will cost over $1m, is to have numbers on site.

“What the client is keen about is creating quality, affordable housing.

“We have a broad mix of demographics from singles to larger family and hopefully catering for that older demographic as well.”

The Glenorchy Planning Authority will consider the development at a meeting on Monday, March 15 at Elwick Racecourse.