Plans for $59 million apartment-hotel complex in Kenny Street

Last year, Blaq Projects put forward a plan to build an 18-storey apartment complex and hotel across the three land lots immediately south of the cultural centre.

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The development, which included 75 apartments and 56 hotel rooms, was approved by the Southern Regional Planning Panel in December last year.

However, since the recent acquisition of the cultural centre - a significant site for the Illawarra Aboriginal Corporation (IAC) and its members over multiple generations since 1980 - the developer has upgraded its plans.

Now it wants to build a $59 million complex including 107 apartments and 105 hotel rooms, along with ground floor commercial space.

In February last year, the old plans were valued almost half that amount - $33 million.

Parking that was for 122 vehicles has also been increased to 190 spaces - 57 spaces for the hotel guests and staff, three commercial spaces and 109 residential spots with 21 visitor parking spaces.

"The proposed hotel development will not only provide Wollongong city centre with a high-quality hotel to support local tourism, ground level businesses to support activation of the streetscape and a diverse range of residential types in a location that is well serviced by public transport, local amenities and public open space," the application's statement of environmental effects said.

A traffic study said the existing uses of the four land lots - including a gym and commercial space - created a total of 47 vehicle movements in both the morning and evening peaks.

It claimed the hotel and apartment complex would only add an extra 18 trips an hour in the morning peak and an extra seven in the evening "and will have no noticeable impact on the surrounding amenity and intersection performance".

"The project's additional movements at the Kenny Street-Burelli Street and Kenny Street-Ellen Street intersections will be so minor in relation to the existing vehicle movements that there will be no perceptible difference to that of the existing peak circumstances," the study said.

"It is apparent that the proposed development will not have any adverse traffic implications."

The development application is on public exhibition until October 27.

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