Residents have until November 11 to comment on a revised proposal for a 47-room ‘co-living’ housing development at 18 Watt St, Gosford.
A 44-room boarding house was approved for the site in September, 2019, comprising towers – one of five storeys storeys frontingWatt St and one of 14 storeys fronting Keevers Lane.
The DA was not activated, with the proponent deciding the configuration of buildings on the site would not be financially viable with the returns expected from a boarding house.
On December 23, 2020, a modification reducing the 14-storey tower to seven storeys was refused as being not substantially the same development.
The latest proposal is for one six-storey and one eight-storey tower, with a small ground floor convenience store.
A Statement of Environmental Effects (SEE) submitted with the DA says the development is close to the Gosford CBD and public transport and would provide affordable rental accommodation, likely to be utilised by employees of Gosford Hospital, hotels in the CBD and the Imperial Shopping Centre.
Of the 47 rooms, 38 would be double sized, and five singles.
A Co- Living Housing Development is a new form of affordable rental housing introduced under the Housing SEPP, 2021.
Each tower would have a lift and laundry, with the smaller tower including a common room and the larger containing two.
Car parking would be provided onsite within a two-level carpark.
The proposed convenience store would also double as a reception for accommodation and operate from 7am-10pm seven days a week.
It would employ two people, one of whom would also act as the manager of the development.
The store is intended to make the development more self contained with everyday items (such as bread and milk) available on site and to serve to serve the nearby residential flat development further north along Watt St.
Source:
Central Coast Council DA tracker
DA2153/2022