Camberwell set for Cera Stribley-designed mixed-use development after green light
The City of Boroondara has approved a new 12-level mixed-use development that will become the second tallest building in the area.
The project, at 697-699 Burke Road, Camberwell, has been designed by Cera Stribley for boutique property developer Above Zero and will have 36 apartments set above five levels of office space and retail on the ground level.
There will be a mix of 18 two-bedroom apartments, 13 three-beds and five four-bedroom units toward the top of the building.
The approval follows an extensive planning process that has been ongoing site 2015 when the City of Boroondara first refused a 15-level, 62-unit development on the 1,950 sqm site. A year later there was an application to reduce the building to 12 levels, and the number of apartments down to 53, which was also refused.
Local residents, particularly those from the nearby Aerial building, had raised concerns about the building’s height and parking provisions.
The final design, which gained support from both the council and previous objectors, includes office spaces on levels one to five, apartments on levels six to eleven, and a communal rooftop terrace on level 12.
The Camberwell Junction area is expected to need a further 1,500 additional new dwellings by 2051 to keep up with population growth, the planning documentation suggested.
Council said that while the maximum building height set at 10 storeys in the structure plan, the design detailing and setbacks of any levels above that are extremely relevant and critical to their acceptability.
"We have consistently argued that the maximum building height on the review site is dependent on many factors, including retaining the visual primacy of the Aerial towers in the Junction’s skyline. These factors were exhaustively debated and examined in various VCAT orders, which found that a 12-storey form was acceptable on the subject site, keeping in mind that back then, the site was considerably smaller comprising 699 Burke Road only."
