Global Awards News

LONDON: Developers are encountering growing opposition to their plans to service the boomers and downsizers markets.

The owner of a northern Sydney petrol station said he had “no idea” his business had been earmarked for demolition as part of a multimillion-dollar plan to turn a town centre site into a high rise development.

A strip of shops in the heart of West Ryde’s CBD would be turned into a seven-storey building with 62 units under plans released by Sydney-based developer Ventus Group last week.

The new complex at 2-6 Chatham Rd would include five retail outlets with 62 apartments on the upper six levels.

There would also be landscaping works and two levels of basement carparking with 86 spaces.

The development would involve the demolition of current shops on the site – home to businesses including Squirts Car Wash, West Ryde Petrol and Japanese restaurant Tatsuya.

Anil Munagala, who owns the petrol station and leases the site, said he had not been made aware of the development plans.

“I’ve been here since 2006 and it’s not like a normal shop where I can relocate – it’s a petrol station so I’d have to close,” he said.

“We’re on a short lease of one to two months at a time. Is the development going to start in six months, one year, two years? We don’t know.

“It makes it hard and we need to know what’s happening so we can at least plan ahead.”

West Ryde Service Centre, which has been operating at the site since 1981, would also have to close down at the site.

Manager Shant Geroyan – whose family sold the business – said the business has plans to relocate to a new site at Victoria Rd once development works on the project begin.

The high-rise proposal has split opinions among residents with objectors arguing it could exacerbate traffic for motorists in the town centre.

“The roundabouts at this spot in Chatham Rd are at present dangerous and poorly understood by drivers (and) it is unbelievable that such a gross overdevelopment could be put here,” resident David James said.

There are also concerns about the impact on community infrastructure, with resident Elizabeth Latimer saying the suburb’s sewerage lines were already “struggling” under the weight of recent development activity.

“The smell and lingering pong is evidence of this. It’s been an on/off issue for decades. The infrastructure must be in place before such developments are planned because higher density living brings additional stressors on all facilities,” she said.

But supporters say the project would modernise the site and create a gateway to West Ryde – adding the town centre was “in dire need of revitalisation”.

“The scale/bulk are suitable and the less service stations/derelict buildings we have the better,” one supporter wrote.

The plans come after the height limit of the site was increased to 24m by Ryde Council in 2021.

The development would stand 2.4m above that height limit which plans argued was “only very minor in nature” and “will not impact upon views from any adjoining property”.

Traffic modelling included in the proposal meanwhile predicts the development will generate fewer cars on local roads than the current businesses at the site.

“When the service station, the car wash and the vehicle repair business cease to operate on the site, a significant proportion of traffic movements will be removed from the local road network,” the plans stated.

“The proposal is considered an appropriate development of the site, sensitively considering context, while promoting design excellence and urban consolidation as a suitable precedent for mixed use development in the locality.”

Ventus Group development manager Georgio Jabbour said business owners and residents would be able to have their say on the proposal during community consultation.

“West Ryde has a large potential to accommodate for a mix of housing types and increased density to be planned and delivered for the town centre,” he said.

“The town centre is currently somewhat underutilised and could cater for more density, retail, and commercial uses to add to a more vibrant and novel community hub.”

The proposal remains under assessment by Ryde Council.