Boomer housing demand changing face of beach suburbs
LONDON: Boomer housing demand is now changing the face of traditional suburbs and beachside living.
Plans for a four-storey apartment complex could trigger a wave of development on Cottesloe’s main shopping strip, but is set to meet resistance from the town council.
Australian Development Capital — which is leading the redevelopment of Perth Girls School in East Perth and is a member of Sterling Cooper Collective — has submitted a $2.5 million proposal on Napoleon Street.
SCC is based in Cottesloe, further up Napoleon Street, and purchased the new site for $3m in November 2021.
The site at 19-21 Napoleon St is currently occupied by Up Town Coffee & Food and by Shiraz.
The company has also applied for a change of use for the ground floor from ‘Shop/Dining Room’ to ‘Restaurant and Small Bar’.
ADC director Adam Zorzi said the proposed development would deliver 750sqm of office space over three levels.
The company plans to keep and restore the heritage storefront of Shiraz and set the new development back 12m, in excess of the required 2m.
Town staff have recommended council advise the Joint Development Assessment Panel refuse the proposal, citing its “height, scale, functionality, and absence of orderly and proper planning.”
But Mr Zorzi said the town’s draft Cott Village Precinct Plan would allow up to three storeys and that the plan had been “delayed” for years.
He said the setback would give the appearance of three storeys from the streetfront.
“This (setback) was done to give the heritage front breathing space, Mr Zorzi said.
“As a result it reads as a three-storey building from the street.
“We’re in a town centre and we are not overshadowing residents.
“The town centre needs more people and the town has developed this plan to get more people in, so we think this development will go a long way towards achieving that.”
Mr Zorzi said he believed the development would be a “trigger” for further investment on Napoleon Street.
“We certainly think there is opportunity for activation of the night-time economy on Napoleon Street,” he said.
“Another restaurant or bar would be very well received.”
Mr Zorzi said the company was in talks with the current business tenants and said they were “in discussions to find solutions” either for the businesses to remain in the building or to move to a different spot.
He said construction would not start until a solution was found.
Mr Zorzi said most of the shopfronts were long and narrow, resulting in unused vacant space at the back.
ADC plans to amalgamate the two shops into one large restaurant, which Mr Zorzi said would allow the back part of the space to be used.
Mr Zorzi said the building was designed to be carbon neutral within two years and would “set a benchmark for suburban office development in Perth”.
During public consultation there were 13 submissions received, with 11 in support and two “raising concerns”.
Town staff have said the proposed development does not “respect the permitted scale and built form of the surrounding single-storey and two-storey properties in Napoleon Street”.
“There is insufficient justification for proposed variations to the scheme to be allowed based on the preservation of the existing heritage building on the site, including significant variations to building height, storeys, parking and plot ratio,” they said.
“The proposal will set an undesirable precedent for developments that do not conform to the adopted local planning framework.”
Town staff have also pushed back on the company’s argument that the draft precinct plan allows three storeys and said further community consultation was still ahead.
“The draft Cott Village Precinct Plan has been advertised, but it has not been adopted by council,” they said.
Cottesloe councillors will vote on their recommendation to the JDAP next week.
