Deicorp, Hyecorp, Thirdi Shortlisted for St Leonards Site

Deicorp, Hyecorp Property Group and Thirdi Group have been shortlisted by the NSW Government to develop a St Leonards site with potential for more than 400 homes.

The 3301sq m site at Herbert Street, near the Royal North Shore Hospital, was identified as surplus to requirements by an ongoing audit of government lands, and was first offered to Landcom and Homes NSW.

When those government development agencies passed on the offer, expressions of interest were sought and received from nine commercial developers.

A tower of up to 62 storeys is permitted. The site is within the Crows Nest Transport Oriented Development zone, which means a minimum 15 per cent affordable housing is mandated. 

The area has been experiencing a long, slow trend of increasing residential and declining commercial usage. 

The yield permissible would deliver about 60 affordable homes. The particular conditions of sale for the site include a requirement that 100 per cent of that affordable housing be allocated to healthcare workers at Royal North Shore Hospital.

In 2023, a Thirdi study found that healthcare workers were having to travel 30 to 50km to get to work. Workers at Royal North Shore Hospital were having to pay up to 58 per cent of their salary to rent a studio in the area.

NSW minister for land and housing Steve Kemper said that the shortlisting was “a significant milestone and an important next step towards the sale of this unused government land so it can be used to create hundreds of new homes in one of Sydney’s most connected precincts”.

▲ The site is within the Crows Nest Transport Oriented Development zone.

He said the Government was keen to work with experienced developers who shared a vision for a vibrant, inclusive community at St Leonards.

The site was a rare opportunity to deliver homes, including affordable housing for essential hospital workers, and commercial space next to Royal North Shore Hospital and major transport links, Kemper said.

The three developers will be invited to tender for the site later this year, with detailed project proposals forming part of their submissions. Concepts, feasibility, delivery programs and transaction structures will be assessed.

That process should close by the end of 2025, the Government said, and the successful proponent was expected to be selected early next year.

The ongoing audit of sites last month uncovered another seven blocks with the potential to host up to 600 new homes.