Holdmark Prepares Plans for 1300 Apartments in Sydney’s West

Family-run Holdmark Property Group is filing a state-significant development application for more than 1300 apartments on the banks of the Parramatta River in Sydney’s west.

The NSW Government last week issued a list of industry-specific requirements for the three-building project—expected to cost about $750.7 million—on 5.2ha at 82 Hughes Avenue, Ermington, about 17km from the Sydney CBD.

The Macquarie Park-based builder-developer will now prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for the Department of Planning Housing and Infrastructure.

The development known as Melrose Park West is one of two Holdmark is planning for the former industrial land along the river, about 8km from Parramatta.

Melrose Park East, with estimated development costs of $622 million, is 700m away on 4.25ha at 112 Wharf Road and 30-32 Waratah Street, Melrose Park. That development will be part of a separate state-significant development application.

The six buildings that will make up the two projects are part of the Melrose Park Urban Renewal Precinct, which has been identified as a key growth area within the City of Parramatta.

Much of the neighbourhood has been dominated by light industrial uses since the 1950s with a clustering of pharmaceutical businesses.

▲ Holdmark is seeking at least 1377 apartments in its Melrose Park West project.

Holdmark acquired its Wharf Road site from the pharmaceutical group Eli Lilly in July of 2015, paying $41.5 million, according to CoreLogic.

Late in 2022, the Parramatta council finalised amendments to development controls for the rapidly changing precinct, allowing for a mix of high-density residential and small-scale retail and commercial uses.

One of the key amendments increased the maximum height of buildings from 12m to a combination of 31m, 68m and 77m—or about 22 storeys.

However, in documents seeking Secretary’s Environmental Assessment Requirements (SEARs) town planning consultants The Planning Studio said the developer was looking for height and floor space incentives that would see the three buildings rise to 40.3m, 88.4m and 100.1 metres.

Under reforms to the NSW State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP) in December last year, bonuses of up to 30 per cent on height and floor space ratios are introduced if a proposal gives at least 15 per cent of building space over to affordable housing.

Those bonuses—first mooted by the Minns Government in June last year—are designed to make it faster and easier to build more affordable housing.

The Planning Studio said the proposal would include an affordable housing component of at least 15 per cent, equal to about 206 apartments. A registered community housing provider would be nominated when the state-significant development application was lodged.

▲ A 320m public and active-transport bridge over the Parramatta River is proposed to connect Melrose Park with Wentworth Point.

According to an urban design report by Cox Architecture, Holdmark wants at least 1377 apartments in the three buildings making up Melrose Park West. The bulk of those—at least 70 per cent—will be of two bedrooms, with the remainder a mix of one and three bedrooms.

The residential gross floor area is expected to be about 118,500 square metres.

Under a Voluntary Planning Agreement, Holdmark has committed to public open space of at least 14,914sq m—including a new waterfront park—as well as building dedicated roads, cycleways and footpaths.

The Planning Studio says Holdmark has a development application lodged with Parramatta Council, seeking demolition of the existing buildings, as well as earthworks for proposed roads and infrastructure such as stormwater drains and utilities.

Critically, the development will have its own station—one of three along the precinct— on stage two of the Parramatta Light Rail link. In June of 2022, NSW premier Dominic Perrottet said his government would push ahead with the second stage of the $2.4-billion infrastructure project.

Development on the northern end of Melrose Park is well advanced with privately owned developer Deicorp having its own plans for the first phase of their six-building, 24-storey mega-project.

Deicorp’s plans call for a five-storey commercial podium with six shoptop housing towers and a gross floor area of about 73,600 square metres—all part of the Melrose Park Town Centre, which will service the entire precinct.

The remainder of Melrose Park is being delivered by Sekisui House, with two development applications before Parramatta Council.

▲ A render of the Deicorp town centre at the northern end of the precinct.