Wollongong’s infamous Quattro development site is to be sold to overseas investors.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Wollongong councillors voted on Monday night to give the first option of buying the prominent CBD property to a consortium of Malaysian investors.
It is understood the recently formed company Gateway Wollongong Pty Ltd has been in negotiations with the council over its interest in the site for some time. Gateway Wollongong’s directors are Sascha Saleem Khan, Jaganath Sabapathy, Edwin Yang and Choony Pan, all from Kuala Lumpur, together with Wollongong woman Janne Lindrum.
Ms Lindrum was at Monday’s council meeting to hear the decision.
This was held in a session closed to the public and media.
Ms Lindrum would not reveal what the company had in store for the site.
She did say, however, that it would be ‘‘a terrific step forward for Wollongong’’.
‘‘The directors of Gateway Wollongong are enormously grateful for the support from our local team during the last 12 months,’’ she said.
‘‘Now is the time to roll our sleeves up. You’re going to have a great landmark [here].’’
Wollongong council general manager David Farmer said the council had originally anticipated holding onto the site for a longer period after purchasing it nine months ago in order to retain it as one bloc.
He said Gateway Wollongong would work with the council to develop a master plan for the area.
Confidentiality prevented Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery from divulging more information about the plans for the site other than to say the investors had not put specific plans to the council.
However, he did say the aim was to create a building that was ‘‘iconic’’ in living up to its status as a gateway entry to the city.
‘‘We’re looking forward to having a look at concept plans,’’ he said.
The site, bordering Flinders, Campbell and Keira streets, featured prominently in the 2008 Independent Commission Against Corruption inquiry into Wollongong City Council.
The commission found that developer Frank Vellar had engaged in corrupt conduct by engineering the approval of his Quattro development with his lover, council planner Beth Morgan.