Two significant commercial buildings in the western end of Wollongong's Crown Street have been acquired by WIN Properties Pty Ltd.
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The commercial and residential property arm of the media company, which owns the WIN Television network in Australia, bought the former Commonwealth Bank building at 243 Crown Street for $6.02 million last year.
Earlier this year, WIN bought the IMB building at 253 Crown Street for $6.25 million.
The IMB has entered into a leaseback arrangement for its head office building.
WIN Properties Pty Ltd controls holdings of commercial and residential property.
The company began buying Crown Street commercial properties back in the 1990s.
WIN bought the multi-level 221-229 Crown Street, known as the NRMA building, for $2.85 million in July, 1991.
In 1997, WIN snapped up another two commercial properties at 231 Crown Street for $740,000 and 233-235 Crown Street for $1.2 million.
The company owns 1256 square metres of commercial space at 86 Burelli Street, a parcel which includes The Grand Hotel.
WIN also owns four commercial properties in Keira Street.
Wollongong lord mayor Gordon Bradbery said he did not wish to comment specifically on WIN's properties but confirmed there had been talks in the business community for some time about the future of the western end of Crown Street.
"There have been talks about a large development that would cover that entire end of Crown Street, Keira Street and Burelli Street, that 'wedge' if I can put it like that," he said.
"There are a lot of ideas floating around, everything from a cinema complex right through to more retail and restaurants. There is nothing that is bedded down at this stage or certain.
"We know that retail has been doing it tough, so it's more in terms of what a city centre would look like in terms of entertainment possibilities.
"I think that's where they might be some opportunities for that part of Crown Street."
Cr Bradbery said an entertainment precinct would need a strong population to support it, and Wollongong was headed in that direction as more people moved into the CBD and its immediate surrounding suburbs to live.
He said the western end of Crown Street was starting to experience the spin-off effects of GPT's major shopping centre expansion, as well as benefiting from the council's facade rejuvenation scheme.
"That's really going ahead and it's smartening up that end of town," he said.
Cr Bradbery said Wollongong City Council had funded $600,000 over two years into the program in which property owners are given a dollar-for-dollar contribution of up to $20,000 to upgrade their shopfronts.
Cr Bradbery said his trip to the United States last year as a delegate on the Future Cities Program had highlighted how local precincts could be revitalised with improved housing options.
"I hope to sit down soon with all the stakeholders at the western end of Crown Street to look at ways in which we can move forward with new affordable housing opportunities such as studio apartments." .
He said not everybody is interested in parking or gardens and creating studio-type accommodation might be one way of helping people into the housing market.
lturk@fairfaxmedia.com.au
