The original ‘Archbold’ was touted as the crowning glory of the Gosford Revitalisation Plan overseen by the State Planning Department.
But a disgraced council and a perceived anti-development atmosphere brought investor confidence in Gosford to a shuddering halt in the CBD.
Prime development sites at the old Marketplace complex opposite Kibble Park and at the former prime location of the Union Hotel suddenly went on the market.
Sydney-based developer Aland bought the Union Hotel site and has broken ground on the $375m twin-tower apartment and hotel complex.
And the project is seen as a ‘clarion call’ that Gosford CBD is back and open for business.
Ground works have begun on the 5656sq m block which will house the two, 28-storey towers to be known as The Archibald, after Archibald Acheson, the second Earl of Gosford.
When finished the two buildings will have 323 apartments, 130 hotel rooms, multiple food and beverage outlets, a 2060-sq-m pub and a sky bar and lounge.
It will be a prime location to live or stay in town for professionals and the marketing is targeted towards the high end of the market and investors.
“Archibald residences offer the chance to live at the pinnacle of a highly sought after urban destination,” the introductory sentence on the official sales website reads.
Aland acquired the property for a reported $35.2m including approved development plans.
Last year the Central Coast Council approved changes to the plans which now comprise 37 less hotel rooms.
Council has managed to reinstate Gosford’s future potential under the stewardship of the administrator and the new Chief Executive Officer David Farmer.
Aland chief executive George Tadrosse said told leading development newsletter Urban Developer Gosford his been waiting several years for the site—cleared after an initial development approval in 2019—to be transformed.
“This is a huge opportunity to create a legacy for the city and make the most of this outstanding location,” he said.
“The strong level of interest to date is testament to the demand for a premium lifestyle community. Now the project is coming out of the ground we expect that interest to increase.”
There was plenty of interest in the Archibald right from the start with about 30% of the mix of one, two, three and four-bedroom apartments already sold.
Fifty-eight square-metre, single bedroom apartments start at $450,000 and four-bedroom homes from $1.3m. Aland is not releasing the price of the 280-sq-m penthouses.
Highland Project sales director Georgia Scanlon said despite successive rate rises and a change in Australia’s property market conditions in the past 12 months, buyers were active in high growth sea change areas such as the Central Coast.
“Lifestyle, affordability and proximity to the city underpinned long-term growth,” she said.
“Gosford has had a shortage of high-quality new projects in recent years. A luxury development such as Archibald has appealed to Sydneysiders as well as investors seeking an easily accessible getaway option just under an hour’s drive from the city.”
The project is scheduled for completion by the end of 2024.
Sources: Aland, Urban Developer
