A three-storey mixed use development has been proposed for a site adjacent to the Ettalong ferry terminal, where a 24-room boarding house was refused by the then Gosford Council in 2013.
The $5.4M development, now under consideration by Central Coast Council, would see ground floor retail space topped by 11 residential units on a block stretching from 302-306 Ocean View Rd to the waterfront.
Ground floor parking would accommodate 23 vehicles.
The Peninsula Chamber of Commerce has welcomed the lodgement of the DA for the iconic commercial site.
“The proposed 11 residential units and ground floor commercial spaces represents a significant improvement to the architectural standard of the area with the external façade treatments being of particularly high quality,” Chamber President, Matthew Wales, said.
“The proposal is three storeys and generally complies with Council’s development standards.
“By providing high quality residential units and improved ground level retail, the development will enliven the Ferry Rd precinct in what has become the Pacific Gateway to the Peninsula with the connecting Palm Beach ferry service to the northern beaches.
“The project will also boost property values and lift the architectural design bar for future developments.”
A Statement of Environmental Effects (SEE) provided with the application says an existing commercial building would be partially demolished and a residential dwelling razed to make way for the new development.
The SEE says the proposal will improve the architectural standard of the locality and complement future development in the area.
Variations to Floor Space Ratios will ensure the best use of the site, the SEE says.
“The proposal ensures the highest and best use of the subject site by formalizing the trend to higher density accommodation utilising the natural features of the land and activating the primary street frontage (Ocean View Rd) together with the secondary frontage (Ferry Road),” it says.
The site forms the eastern gateway to the Ettalong Beach village centre both by road from Booker Bay and by ferry.
The would be 13.45m, which is higher than the maximum permissible building height for that portion of the land, but the SEE says the variation is considered to be justified due to the design merit of the building, its relationship to the future streetscape and the overall bulk and scale of the project.
All traffic movements entering and exiting the development will be restricted to one ingress/egress point located midway along the Ferry Rd boundary on the ground level.
Terry Collins