North Sydney Council’s Director of City Strategy Joseph Hill said that while there may be a “hiatus” on the projects during the considerations of the proposed merger with Willoughby Council, they were projects that “will not go away”.
“These are forward thinking initiatives that came out of the council’s comprehensive study into the recreation needs of our community. The plans have to be looked at – if not by the current council then by any future council,” Mr Hill told NSBA.
“They are excellent concepts that take into account the projected increase in population of North Sydney and St Leonards, more so now that the State has announced two more railway stations for the local government area.
“Extra density will be expected around the new St Leonards station, so more open space will be required in that area.”
Mr Hill said St Leonards population between 2014 and 2031 was expected to grow by 48 per cent.
Essentially, the projects that will transform the two centres are:
Ridge St North Sydney
• Retail fronting Ridge St and James Pl
• Recreation space of 6,967 sq ms comprising indoor recreation space of 4,177 sq ms and four rooftop tennis courts.
• Various internal spaces available for ancillary or community uses.
• Next steps will include refinement of the concept, including preparing a detailed design, the development of a funding plan and the preparation of the associated planning amendments.
The community will be invited to provide feedback and further input into the design during the Planning Proposal and Development Control Plan amendment processes.
Hume Park/Crows Nest
• Partial closure of Hume St and the creation of a new urban plaza and link to Willoughby Rd.
• More than 5,000 sq ms of new open space (over 8,000 sq ms in total), a cinema and expanded indoor sports facilities.
To progress the Hume Street Park, the council will seek expressions of interest from potential cinema operators to test the market in relation to the proposed cinema.
The outcomes of the EOI process for the cinema, together with the alternate options for a fifth basketball court will be reported to council and a determination on the preferred use of the underground space will be made.
Temporary relocation options for North Sydney Indoor Sports Centre activities will be investigated.
Funding of $8M has been included in the 2016/17 budget to progress early stages (Stages 1 & 2) of the park expansion. A long-term funding plan will be required for later stages.
