ResidentialLindsay SaundersFri 03 Jul 26
DOMA Group Moves 1100-Home Newcastle Quay Proposal Forward
A proposal to transform the former Honeysuckle headquarters site on Newcastle's waterfront into a six-building mixed-use precinct has entered the first stage of the NSW planning process.
Planning consultancy SJB has filed a State Significant Development scoping report on behalf of proponent HHQRG Pty Ltd, seeking project-specific Secretary's Environmental Assessment Requirements (SEARs) for the proposed Newcastle Quay development.
HHQRG’s direct is listed in ASIC documents as Jure Domazet, director of DOMA Holdings.
In May this year it was revealed DOMA Group had won the nod to develop the site, the final major Honeysuckle site in Newcastle’s three-decade shift from industrial harbour edge to mixed-use waterfront precinct.
The submission does not seek planning approval for the project itself, but asks the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure to identify the environmental, technical and planning studies that must be completed before a formal development application can be assessed.
The precinct proposal includes about 1100 apartments, a hotel and commercial space.
It is planned fora 3.29ha site at 54 and 55 Honeysuckle Drive, spanning the suburbs of Wickham and Newcastle at the western end of the Honeysuckle urban renewal precinct.
The waterfront site, opposite the Newcastle Interchange and bounded by Honeysuckle Drive, Hannell Street, Station Street and the Hunter River foreshore, is currently dominated by at-grade public car parking and includes the heritage-listed Former Wickham School of Arts building.
Under the concept proposal, the site would accommodate residential apartments, tourist accommodation, commercial offices, retail premises and a function centre across six development blocks.
The concept application also seeks approval for building envelopes, internal streets, public open spaces, landscaping, parking and vehicle access, leaving the detailed design of individual buildings to later development applications.
Across the precinct, the proposal allows for approximately 169,165sq m of gross floor area with an indicative floor space ratio of 5.14:1.
Building heights would range from 10 storeys to 32 storeys, with the tallest towers reaching about 101m.
The proposal includes around 1100 homes and 2756 car parking spaces.
Development would be staged over five phases, beginning with Block A, which is proposed to be submitted concurrently as a detailed Stage 1 State Significant Development application.
Subsequent stages would deliver Blocks F, B, C and finally Blocks D and E.
The proposal argues the development would help meet Newcastle's housing targets while creating a mixed-use precinct combining homes, employment, retail activity and public open space.
The concept also proposes extensive public domain improvements, including new plazas, landscaped streets and pedestrian connections linking the city centre with the Hunter River waterfront.
The proposal would require several variations to existing planning controls, including exceedances of some building height limits, with the proponent intending to pursue an alternative design excellence pathway rather than a competitive design process.
The site also contains the locally listed Former School of Arts building, with planning documents indicating it could potentially be adaptively reused as part of a future hotel or conference facility.
Initial consultation has already been undertaken with the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure, Government Architect NSW, Newcastle City Council and Transport for NSW, with broader community consultation to occur after the SEARs are issued.
