At least one Wollongong councillor says she is unlikely to support the plan to allow about 750 homes to be built on the old Corrimal Coke Works site if it continues in its current form, saying she remains concerned about the effects the new residents would have on traffic and congestion.
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On Monday, developers Legacy Property and the Illawarra Coke Company unveiled a new master plan for the site, as the council prepares to vote whether to progress a rezoning proposal for the derelict industrial site.
Northern suburbs Labor councillor Jenelle Rimmer said she would support the rezoning going out on public exhibition, but warned that this did not mean she would then vote to allow the proposal to be adopted and progressed to the next stage.
She said her main concerns were the density, traffic congestion and the proposed height limits, which are well outside other building heights in Corrimal.
"I do believe that the site needs to be redeveloped, but we also need to really be cognisant of the infrastructure that is around the site," she said.
She said more than 700 homes meant the areas would become "almost a mini suburb".
"That means having on way in and one way out is a big concern, the traffic that is going to be on Railway Street will only continue to get worse if you have more than 700 units - which could mean two cars for each household," she said.
"I think the traffic will be problem for years to come if we let this go ahead as it is. We should have learnt our lessons from the northern suburbs about the traffic congestion when we only have one way in and one way out - we don't want to see that replicated here."
Cr Rimmer, who has been liaising with many residents who hold the same concerns, said she was disappointed that the developers had not listened more closely to these issues over the past three years.
"Instead what we've seen is more apartments being added [to the master plan] even though we have raised these concerns," she said. "We've now ended up with a worse outcome, in my mind."
She said she was supportive of the moves the developers had made towards protecting the sites heritage and increasing public space, and welcomed the establishment of a new heritage plaza which will adjoin Corrimal railway station.
Liberal northern suburbs representative Leigh Colacino said he had not yet made his decision about the rezoning, noting the more than 400 pages of information councillors had been given to digest ahead of Monday night's meeting.
Greens councillor Mithra Cox will not weigh into the debate or cast a vote regarding the planning proposal as she lives near the coke works site, while the final northern suburbs' councillor, Janice Kershaw - who has spoken against the 750-home plan in the past - did not return the Mercury's calls.
Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery said he was supportive of the rezoning, but warned that there were many more steps between now and the land being redeveloped.
"These are just the broad brush strokes," he said.
Housing plan would inject $750 million: developers
The redevelopment of the Corrimal Coke Works will inject more money into the economy than the most recent expansion of Wollongong Central or the city's new private hospital, the project's developers say.
Making the case for the 2000-resident housing plan to go ahead, Legacy Property's Mike Williams said the coke works was "the most significant urban renewal project in the Wollongong LGA".
"This is the best location for housing in the northern suburbs given it's directly on the doorstep of the train station and has fantastic accessibility to key services," he said. "We're confident it will be a catalyst for the ongoing revitalisation of Corrimal...
"This project will stimulate $750 million in economic activity, support 2400 jobs through the construction phase over many years and generate around 140 permanent jobs.
"That's greater economic value than the expansion of Wollongong Central, it's greater value than the expansion of the public hospital and it's greater value than the new private hospital brought to Wollongong."
As part of their rezoning plans, which will be debated next week by Wollongong councillors, the developers and Illawarra Coke Company have submitted a planning agreement outlining about $24 million of public benefits - in the form of land and public works.
Some of these would offset the development contributions that the companies would make to the council.
Kate McIlwain
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
