ResidentialPatrick LauMon 29 Jun 26
Barings, Aware Secure 188-Home Twin Highrises at St Leonards
Aware Super and Barings have won approval for twin 15-storey towers at St Leonards after multiple stalled earlier attempts including a Land and Environment Court refusal.
The $167-million project, endorsed under the Housing Delivery Authority pathway, may now proceed with a 188-home yield, a childcare centre and community hall.
The project on Sydney’s North Shore will provide 5 per cent of the Lane Cove Council five-year housing target in a suburb transitioning from commercial to residential use amid “the worst-performing office market in the country”.
Since acquiring the site in 2022, the Aware-Barings team has attempted a 130-home version of the scheme through the council, the Sydney North Planning Panel and LEC; followed by consideration of the plan under the Infill Affordable Housing Incentive Scheme.
The 5015sqm site at 12-20 Berry Road and 11-19 Holdsworth Avenue is 500m from the Royal North Shore Hospital, and 500m from the St Leonards train station, 700m from Wollstonecraft station and 950m from the Crows Nest Metro station.
A basement with 206 car parking spaces, 450sq m outdoor park and childcare recreation area, and 15m site through-link will be delivered as part of the Turner Studio-designed project.
Aware Super chief executive Deanne Stewart said that many of her members were essential workers and that the project, including the 15 per cent affordable contribution in the form of 36 apartments, “helps them live closer to the hospitals, schools and services our communities depend on”.
“Aware Super is proud to invest in the housing Sydney needs, while putting our members' retirement savings into a strong, long-term asset that builds their financial future,” Stewart said.
The area surrounding the hospital has been a particular target for developers aiming to contribute a solution to, and capitalise on, a nurse housing shortage.
